Everything's Coming Up Salvatore
by HistoryGirl22
Summary: Set in Season 2. When Serafina Salvatore gets a call from someone wanting her to return home to Mystic Falls, she has absolutely no idea all that awaits her. And, she never would have expected how crazy her life was about to get. Rated T, just in case! Please Read and Review!
1. Introduction - A Call to Come Home

She groaned when she heard the vibrating on the bedside table. Who the hell was calling her this early in the morning? She opened her eyes and grabbed her phone, briefly looking at the name before answering. "Do you even know what time it is?"

" _Of course I do. It's not that late. Where are you?"_

"Italy," she said. "So, yes, it is very late."

" _Or early, depending on how you're looking at things. Why are you in Italy?"_

She sighed. "I like Italy," she replied. "Why are you calling me?"

" _Hmm. You're in a bad mood."_

"Most people are when they are woken up at 4:00 in the morning," she replied. "Will you tell me what you want?"

" _Sera, I need you to come home."_

"Where is home for you nowadays?"

" _I mean actual home. Mystic Falls."_

"Mystic Falls?" She said. "Why the hell are you back there?"

" _I have my reasons."_

"I'm not helping you with any nefarious plan."

" _You need to, actually."_

"And, why is that?"

" _Because your father is trapped inside the tomb and we need your magic to help get him out."_

"Tomb?" Sera said. "What tomb? What are you talking about?"

" _Look, I don't have time to explain the whole story to you right now. I need you to get on the next plane and come home."_

Sera rolled her eyes. "Cryptic, as always."

" _Are you coming or not?"_

"It appears that I don't have much of a choice," Sera replied. "Though you and Dad have a hell of a lot of explaining to do. Starting with how you two managed to live in the same town without killing each other."

" _Really? That's the question you're going to start with?"_

"Better to start stories from the beginning, wouldn't you agree?"

She knew her uncle rolled his eyes before responding. _"Your questions will be answered as soon as we get him out. I promise."_

"Good," Sera said, throwing back her blankets and getting out of bed. "I'll be on the next plane."

" _See you soon, my favorite niece."_

"Only niece," Sera reminded him. "See you soon, Uncle Damon."

Serafina Salvatore closed her phone and threw it back on her bed as she went to the closet to get her suitcase. Mystic Falls. She hadn't been back there in years and, here she was, rushing to pack her belongings to go save her father from a mysterious tomb he was apparently trapped in.

This ought to be fun.

* * *

" _What are you talking about?"_

"I'm not even sure myself," Sera said. She had finished going through security at the airport and was waiting to board the plane. "You know as much as I do."

" _What are they both doing back in Mystic Falls?"_

"That is in my top five questions to ask when I get there," Sera said. "Where are you now?"

" _Currently Massachusetts, but I have a feeling that a relocation is in my near future."_

Sera smiled a little. "You'll be able to get there quicker than I will."

" _Send me your flight information and I will pick you up at the airport. Then, we can both make our grand entrance into our old hometown together."_

"That's actually a really good idea."

" _I don't often have bad ones."_

"Do you hear yourself when you say these things?"

" _I know, I know. I sound just like him. What can I say? Like father, like son."_

"Yeah, yeah."

There was a pause. _"Are you alright?"_

Sera sighed. "As much as anyone can be when they hear that their father is stuck inside an old tomb."

" _Uncle Stefan will be fine. I know he will."_

"I hope so," Sera said, as they started calling for her flight. "They're starting to board. I've got to go."

" _Alright. I'll see you at the airport."_

Sera smiled. "See you soon, Xavier."

Sera hung up the phone and got in line with her ticket in hand. Soon, she would be home. Soon, she would be reunited with her family.

And, soon, she would be getting herself involved in something much more than just saving her father from a tomb. That much she knew for sure.

* * *

 **"If anything, I just want to be a great dad to spite him." - Damon;** **"I think my only regret would be not having a kid." - Stefan (Season 7 Episode 6).**

 _ **Naturally, after hearing these quotes, I wanted to see what would happen if Stefan and Damon had kids during the events that took place in the show. How would things have changed? Would things have changed? How would said kids have fit in with the rest of the Mystic Falls Gang? What kind of pasts did they have, aside from the time they spent with their fathers? Etc. So, this is my attempt at seeing what would have happened if two such characters were present.**_

 _ **The title for this new series, as I like to call it, comes from the show. Damon says it in Season 7 Episode 5 and I just really liked it.**_

 _ **As always, I will try and keep the Canon characters as in character as possible, but if I feel that there is an instance where someone is OOC, I will warn you. I am also trying to keep things as chronologically correct as possible, but I find the timeline semi-confusing. Thankfully, this is FanFiction and I can move things around a little bit if I need to!**_

 ** _I don't claim to own TVD; I just own Sera and Xavier! They are all mine!_**

 _ **Author's note aside, I hope you enjoy the story! Please read and review!**_


	2. A Not-So Warm Welcome Home

"I've missed this place."

Xavier Salvatore looked at his cousin before looking back at the Salvatore Boarding House. It was the one place that both of them knew they could always come back to, the one place that they could truly call home. Sera loved the house so much that Zach, their distant cousin, had promised her that, when he died, she could have it. "I have too," he admitted. "There is some truth in the phrase 'there's no place like home'."

Sera nodded as Xavier pulled the car to the side of the driveway, just before the overhang in front of the front door. "I can't even remember the last time we were all here together."

"It's been a while," Xavier agreed. They both got out of the car. "Speaking of, did you tell my dad that I was coming?"

"Of course not," Sera said. "I was on a plane."

"Probably better that way," Xavier said, as they closed the doors behind them. "I don't get that many chances to surprise the bastard, so I am going to use this one to my full advantage."

"I wouldn't start with calling him a bastard."

Xavier laughed. "No, I suppose that would put a damper on things," he agreed. "But, I'm mad at him that he called you and not me. Did he not want me to be part of this impromptu family reunion?"

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Sera said. "There has to be some sort of reason that we were kept away until dire circumstances demanded our return."

"Demanded your return," Xavier corrected. They both stopped just outside the front door of the Boarding House. "Lest we forget, I'm not as special as you are."

Sera rolled her eyes and was about to say something when sounds of a fight brought both her and Xavier's attention to the front door. "What was that?"

"Nothing good I imagine."

They opened the front door and the sounds of fighting only got louder. Once the door was open, they found what appeared to be a vampire attacking a human girl. Going into Vampire Mode, Xavier pulled the vampire off of the girl and threw her against a wall. Sera turned to the girl as Xavier grabbed the vampire by the neck and pinned her against the wall.

"Go!" Sera shouted to the girl. "Run now!"

The girl did as she was told without hesitation. Sera turned back to her cousin and the vampire.

"Calm down!" Xavier exclaimed. The vampire struggled against his grasp. "Don't make me do something you'll regret!"

"Xavier, wait!" Sera said. She went out of Vampire Mode and looked at the girl's attacker closely. "She's sick."

Xavier looked at his cousin and then back at the apparently sick vampire. He loosened his grip a bit and took in the vampire's haggard and sickly appearance. "Werewolf bite…" he said. "Something that my dad neglected to tell you, I assume?"

Sera nodded. In that moment, the sick vampire slammed her head against Xavier's and moved to take off into another part of the enormous house as Xavier stumbled backwards, going out of Vampire Mode as he did so. "Shit!" Xavier said, rubbing his head.

Sera's eyes were on the now-escaping vampire. With a flick of her wrist, the vampire's neck snapped and she fell to the ground in an unconscious heap.

Xavier looked at his cousin. "What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?"

"I have absolutely no idea," Sera said. "But, all of our questions will have to wait until we see Uncle Damon. Right now, we have to find our sick vampire friend a place to sleep off her broken neck and then find the girl she was attacking."

"I really wouldn't call her a friend," Xavier said. "And, I don't feel comfortable getting near her either. If she's sick with a werewolf bite, not only is it fatal for her, but I really wouldn't want to see what happens if she bites one of us."

"Agreed," Sera said. They both went over to the sick vampire and picked her up. "But, we certainly can't leave her here on the floor. Let's take her to Uncle Damon's room. We can lock her in there."

The two carried the unconscious vampire to Damon's room and laid her on the sweat soaked and messy bed. "Something tells me that this is where she escaped from," Xavier said.

"Excellent deduction, Watson," Sera said. "Come on. We need to find the girl and make sure she's alright."

Xavier nodded as the two left the room, closing and locking the door behind them. "I'm calling my dad," he said, pulling out his cell phone. "He could have at least been here when we arrived to warn us about what was happening. Did you tell him when you were getting in?"

"I gave him a rough estimate," Sera admitted. "So, you can't entirely blame him for not being here to greet us. After all, with my dad stuck in a tomb, I'm sure that Uncle Damon is busy trying to find a solution."

"You were his solution, remember?" Xavier said, his phone was now at his ear.

Ignoring her cousin, Sera used her magic to trace where the girl had run off to. When she managed to find a path, she turned to her cousin. "She's in my dad's room." she said, as Xavier hung up the phone. "What did you say in your voicemail?"

"Hi, Dad. Come home. There's an impaired vampire locked in your bedroom."

"Seriously?"

"What? Did I leave something out?" Xavier said.

"How about that we found her inside our home attacking a human girl?"

"That's not all that important at present," Xavier said. "The main thing is to take care of her before she hurts someone."

Sera rolled her eyes. It took them a few minutes to get to Stefan's bedroom where the girl was hiding and, when they did, Sera knocked on the door. "Hello?"

"Go away!"

Sera and Xavier looked at each other and then back at the closed door. Did she honestly think that would work? "We live here," Xavier said. "It's us who should be telling you to go away."

There was a pause. "You live here?"

"Yeah," Sera said. "I was actually promised this house, one day."

"You know Stefan and Damon?"

"Intimately," Xavier said, which earned him a slap on the shoulder from his cousin. "You might even say that we're family."

Sera and Xavier could hear the sound of furniture dragging across the floor and then the door opened, revealing the girl. She had long, straight brown hair and a face that seemed vaguely familiar to them, but they didn't entirely know why. "Family?"

"Xavier Salvatore, at your service," he said, with a small bow. "And, this is my cousin, Serafina Salvatore."

"I'm Elena," she said. "Elena Gilbert."

"Wonderful," Xavier said. "Now that introductions have been made, will you allow us to protect you until my father decides to check his voicemail and comes home?"

"Your father?"

Sera gave her an awkward smile. "Clearly, they haven't told you about us."

Elena blinked a couple times and then shook her head. "No, they haven't," she said. "Please, come in. Before Rose comes back."

"Ah! So, we now have a name for our sick attacker," Xavier said, as he and Sera entered the room and Elena closed the door behind them.

"We can protect you from here," Sera said, stopping Elena from dragging the dresser back in front of the door. "This Rose is weakened from her illness. She won't be able to take both me and Xavier on at the same time, no matter how old she may be. We have her locked in Damon's bedroom. You'll be safe with us."

"Plus, no one is a match for Sera and her powers."

"Alright, slow down!" Elena said. "This is all so much to take in."

"Right, how rude of me," Xavier said. "Your mind must be buzzing with questions. Though, you do already seem to be on the vampire bandwagon."

"I am," Elena said. "But, tell me again how you're related to Damon and Stefan?"

"You're looking at their children," Xavier said. He pointed at his cousin. "Serafina Salvatore, daughter of Stefan, who was born two months before he was turned in 1864. And I am Xavier Salvatore, son of Damon, born two years before the horrible events that turned both of our fathers into vampires."

Anticipating the effect this information would have on their new acquaintance, Sera dragged a chair behind Elena and she sat down, clearly in shock over what Xavier had revealed. "Stefan and Damon…have children…?"

"Forgive my cousin and his insensitive way of revealing this to you," Sera said, shooting her cousin a glare. Xavier shrugged. "He is very much like Damon, though he never likes to admit it."

"Why wouldn't they have told me?" Elena asked, more to herself than anyone else.

"Clearly, you all have been preoccupied by things going on here," Sera said. "In fact, the only reason why Xavier and I are here is because I got a call from Uncle Damon saying that my father was stuck in some sort of tomb…?"

"Stefan is out of the tomb," Elena said. "He was released by Elijah."

Sera froze for the briefest of seconds at the mention of the ancient vampire's name. Elijah was in town too? Since when did he, or any of the Originals for that matter, spend time in Mystic Falls? Fortunately, though, no one else seemed to notice Sera's reaction to hearing that tidbit of information.

"One of the Originals?" Xavier said. "Ok, I need the story. Right now."

"Yeah, what the hell…?" Sera trailed off when she spotted a framed picture on Stefan's bookshelf of him and Elena. She picked it up and turned back towards Elena. "You two are dating, aren't you?"

Elena looked to the floor momentarily but avoided answering the awkward question. That reaction was all the confirmation that Sera and Xavier needed. "Another little intriguing tidbit that my dad decided to leave out," Xavier said. "That would give us an explanation as to why they did not alert you to our existence. It's not easy for a man to tell his new girlfriend or a girl he fancies that he has a child, especially one that looks as old as he does."

"Can we change the subject, please?" Elena asked, her cheeks turning a slight shade of red in embarrassment.

"Yes, of course," Sera said. "How about you tell us what the hell is going on here? My uncle did not give me any information."

Elena laughed awkwardly. "Where should I start?"

"Preferably from the beginning," Xavier said. "Spare us no detail. We've got all the time in the world."

* * *

"A truly fascinating story," Xavier said. "I haven't been this entertained in quite some time."

The trio had made the determination that it was safe enough to depart from Stefan's room, only to find that the door to Damon's bedroom was wide open and that Rose was gone. They began to search the house to determine whether or not Rose was still there. Elena had a stake in her hand, but Sera and Xavier had promised her that wouldn't be necessary.

"Yeah, well, it hasn't been entertaining for us," Elena said.

"Fair point," Xavier said.

They arrived at the bottom of the stairs and started searching the bottom floor for any sign of the sick vampire. "She's not here," Sera declared.

"Where did she go?" Elena asked.

"Something tells me that she's long gone."

Elena and Sera turned to see Xavier pointing at the wide open front door. "So, she's somewhere in town," Sera said. "Wonderful."

"Xavier, what are you doing here? I didn't call you."

Elena jumped, but Sera and Xavier merely turned, when they heard Damon's voice. "Nice to see you too, Dad," Xavier said. "I'm here because Sera called me."

Damon looked at his niece, who shrugged. "I always tell Xavier where I'm going," Sera said. "When he heard what was happening here, he decided he wanted to come. But, nice of you to tell me that Dad isn't actually stuck in a tomb after all. That could have saved me the air fare."

Damon rolled his eyes. "He managed to get out while you were in the air," he said. "How was I supposed to know that was going to happen?" Damon walked over to his niece and gave her a hug. "It's still good to see you," he said. "Stefan will be pleasantly surprised."

"You too, Uncle Damon," Sera said. "And, I'm sure he will be."

Damon pulled away and walked over to his son and embraced him as well. "Good to see you again, kid."

Xavier hugged back. "You too, Dad."

Damon pulled away from his son and looked at Elena. "So, you've met the rest of the Salvatore clan," he said. "Lucky you." He motioned to the stake in her hand. "But, I trust that my son didn't piss you off enough already to earn a stake in his chest."

Xavier rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. Elena glanced at Xavier before looking at Damon. "We have a situation," she said.

"That much I could tell from the voicemail I got," Damon said. "What's going on? Where's Rose?"

The trio looked at each other before looking back at Damon. "She's gone," Elena finally said.

"Gone?" Damon said. "What happened?"

"There was an attack. We got Elena to safety and we've been protecting her from a potential further attack the whole day long in Uncle Stefan's room," Xavier explained. "Where we finally got the whole story as to what has been happening here since you and Uncle Stefan returned to Mystic Falls."

Damon looked between his niece and his son. "And, you two couldn't have dealt with Rose before she escaped?"

"And risk getting bit by her?" Xavier said. "We didn't want to take that chance. Who knows what could happen if a sick vampire bit a healthy one?"

Damon rolled his eyes. "So, while you three were having story time, you let a werewolf-bitten vampire out to potentially terrorize the whole town because you were afraid of getting bitten yourselves?" he said. "Sera, remind me again what your magic is good for if not for something exactly like this?"

"I had her locked in your bedroom, with a broken neck, but she clearly was still strong enough to escape," Sera defended herself. "I didn't think that she would be this much of a problem."

"Why not spell the door?" Damon asked. "You know, to play it safe? Isn't that what your mother always taught you?"

Sera rolled her eyes at her uncle as Elena looked at her. Sera had magic? Since when did vampires have magic? But, that question had to be put on hold because Damon was already heading out the door.

"Come on," he said. "We don't need Rose killing everyone and everything in sight. We need to find her and get her back here before something horrible happens." Damon looked at his niece and son, a small smirk crossing his lips. "Welcome home, kids."

Xavier and Sera looked at each other before following Damon and Elena out of the Boarding House. "So great to be back," Xavier said, opening the driver's side door of his car as Sera got into the passenger seat. "Especially when we have such a wonderful 'Welcome Home' committee waiting to greet us."

"Don't you worry," Damon said, as he and Elena got into his car. "I'll make it up to you, my boy. I promise."

Xavier slid into the driver's seat and closed the door. He looked to Sera. "Why didn't you spell the door?"

Sera glared at her cousin. "I thought that the broken neck might put a stop to her attacking people for the night," she said. "Just drive the car."

Xavier laughed a little as he put the car in drive and sped off after Damon and Elena. "Mystic Falls," he said. "Where there's never a dull moment."

Sera smirked as they followed Damon down the darkened streets of their hometown. "Not when the Salvatore's are in town."

* * *

 **Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and favorited this story!**

 **I am going to try and post a new update once a week, probably on either Sundays or Mondays. I can't guarantee that this will always be the case, but I can guarantee that I will try to do so!**

 **Also, if you see two stars (**) next to a line of dialogue, this means that the quote was taken directly from the show!**

 **I hope you enjoy this new chapter! Please read and review!**


	3. Planning on Staying

Finding Rose hadn't been extremely difficult. Much to Sera and Xavier's surprise, Damon seemed to be friends with the local sheriff, who called him when a body had been found at the local high school. As the party being held at the high school was quickly moved inside, Sera and Xavier split off from Damon and Elena to find Rose before she had a chance to cause any more deaths. But, their search did not last long because Rose had made another attack and Damon managed to cut it short.

Now, they were back at the Boarding House. Damon was sitting with Rose, Elena had gone home, and Sera and Xavier were sitting in Sera's bedroom. They were all waiting for Rose to die.

It was a strange feeling, just sitting around and waiting for someone to die. Sera and Xavier had done such a thing when Celia, Sera's mother, was dying back in the early 1900s. Sera had sat by her mother's bedside for a good week, while Xavier had only been there for the last two days. Of course, Celia's death had been more significant for them than this one was going to be. They barely knew Rose at all, while they had both known Celia since the days that they were born. In either case, however, the waiting was agony.

"This was not what I was expecting when we arrived in Mystic Falls this morning," Xavier admitted. "I pictured my dad bringing us to some creepy cemetery and you saving Uncle Stefan from whatever trap he managed to get himself in. Then, we would have a family dinner and begin catching up over a few drinks of the finest blood Mystic Falls has to offer."

Sera almost laughed. "You have an idealized version of how our family works."

"Don't tell me you've never imagined such an occurrence," Xavier said.

Sera sighed. "Maybe one day," she replied. "Just not today."

The two of them looked up when Damon appeared in the doorway. The look on his face said it all, but he felt the need to say it out loud any way. "She's gone." Xavier started to stand, but Damon put his hand up and stopped him. "I'm going to go and bury her," he said. "Don't wait up."

"Did you want some help?" Xavier offered. "I don't mind going with you."

Damon shook his head. "No, I've got this," he said. "You two stay here. Get yourselves settled in."

Xavier and Sera said nothing as Damon turned and walked down the hallway. Once he was gone, they turned to each other. "This one seems to have hit him hard," Sera observed. "I haven't seen him like this in a long time."

Xavier crossed his arms. "Yeah, me either," he said. "Well, might as well do as he says. I'll try talking to him when he gets home."

Sera nodded as Xavier left her room to go to his own. The two of them were in the midst of unpacking when they heard voices coming from downstairs. They met up with each other in the hallway and quietly made their way towards the balcony. Looking over the edge, they saw that Elena had come back and that she and Damon were in some sort of argument about how Damon was dealing with Rose's death.

"You still want to try talking to him?" Sera asked, once Elena had left. "He doesn't seem to be in the mood."

"Of course I do," Xavier replied. "You go ahead and get some rest. You've had a much longer last couple of days than I have."

Sera nodded and squeezed her cousin's shoulder before heading back to her bedroom. Xavier headed downstairs only to find that Damon had left. "Shit," Xavier said, under his breath. "Where the hell could he have gone?"

* * *

Had Stefan known his daughter was back in town, he would have made it a point to get home much faster.

He hadn't seen his daughter since before he returned to Mystic Falls. Over the decades since she had turned, they had remained close while still having their own lives and experiences. There were times where Stefan wouldn't see his daughter for years and then times where they would spend a few years together. But, no matter where they were, they had always remained in contact with each other. And, if for some reason they hadn't talked in a while, Stefan always made it a point to talk to Sera on her birthday and on Christmas, whether that meant a card or package in the mail or a telephone or video call depended on the decade and how far technology had come.

Stefan's vampire nature had prevented him from being a constant presence in his daughter's life for the first twenty years of it. He had always been too afraid that he would somehow hurt her or that Sera would see the monster that he had become. That was why he started the birthday/Christmas plan, except, back before Sera became a vampire, he had made it a point to return home to Mystic Falls and visit on those days. Those visits were what Stefan looked forward to the most. Like any relationship, they had their ups and downs. But, Stefan could honestly say that Sera was one of the few people who had stood by him when he was at his best and at his worst. It was Sera who he went to after Monterey and it was Sera, on countless occasions, who helped get him back on track alongside Lexi.

Taking the stairs two at a time, Stefan excitedly headed down the hallway until he reached his daughter's bedroom. Opening the door, he found her already in bed, but the sudden light cutting through the darkened room caused her to wake up. Stefan walked into the room and sat on the edge of Sera's bed as she opened her eyes.

"Dad?"

"Hey, Princess," Stefan said, softly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

It amazed him, even to this day, how much Sera reminded him of her mother, in looks and in the power that she had been blessed with. Despite never having been married, due to the fact that Stefan became a vampire shortly after Sera's birth, Stefan and Celia had loved each other, truly loved each other, and Stefan had been heartbroken when Celia had died.

"No, that's fine," Sera said. She sat herself up as she rubbed her eyes. "I've wanted to see you all day."

"You didn't tell me you were coming home," Stefan said.

"I would have, but I came home to save you," Sera replied. "Uncle Damon called me and told me that you needed help."

"Ah, the tomb," Stefan said. "Well, I can't say that I'm sorry that you had to come home, even though you didn't have to save me like you thought you did."

Sera smiled. "I'm not sorry either," she said. "It would have been nice to have a little forewarning about the whole Rose situation, but that's all in the past now."

"Shockingly enough, Elena was the one who told me that you and Xavier were home," Stefan said. "I heard that you both helped to protect her today. So, thank you."

"Well, I certainly couldn't let anything happen to my father's girlfriend," Sera teased. She laughed when Stefan's face started turning red. "She's seems nice. When were you going to tell me about her?"

"I've been meaning to," Stefan said. "It's just with everything going on…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Sera said, cutting him off. "I've heard it all before. Needless to say, she was downright shocked to find out about me and Xavier. I can't wait to see the looks on the faces of the rest of your newfound friends when we meet them."

"I take it that means that you are planning on staying in town for a while?"

Sera nodded. "I think I am," she said. "And, not just because you all seem to have a lot going on here. I've missed you, I've missed this house. I think it's time to spend some time at home with my family."

Stefan smiled and nodded. "Good," he said. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear." The two embraced and Stefan was still smiling as he pulled away. "Now, you go back to sleep," he said. "I'll see you in the morning."

Stefan stood and walked to the door as Sera nestled herself back under her blankets. "Good night, Dad."

Stefan turned back to look at his daughter, whose eyes had already closed in slumber. "Good night, Princess," he said. "Sweet dreams."

* * *

Xavier was able to track Damon to a quiet road and, when he arrived at the scene, he found his father compelling a poor woman, named Jessica. Xavier assumed that Jessica had stopped and gotten out of her car to help what she thought was a helpless man lying in the middle of the street. That was a tactic that Damon had used quite often throughout his vampire career. Not wanting to spook his father or cause him to do something horrible to Jessica, Xavier remained in the shadows and listened to what was clearly Damon's drunken speech. One particular confession perked his interest, however.

"I'm not human and I miss it!"** Damon exclaimed. "I miss it more than anything in the world. That is my secret."**

Xavier's eyes widened ever-so-slightly at the revelation. He had known that Damon had never really wanted to be a vampire, but given his behavior over the last century, Xavier assumed that Damon had grown to like what he had become. Apparently, he had been wrong about that. He continued to watch, waiting for the right moment to intervene. At one point, he thought that he wouldn't have to intervene at all as he watched Damon tell Jessica that she was allowed to leave. But, as Jessica ran to her car, Damon changed his mind. Xavier pounced on the chance to stop the unnecessary killing by using his Vampire Speed to place himself in between Jessica and his father.

Damon stopped short when he realized his son was standing in front of him. "Xavier?" he said. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?"

"I came after you to make sure you were alright," Xavier replied. "I'm glad I did because clearly you are not."

Damon looked to the ground as Xavier turned to the incredibly frightened Jessica. Looking into her eyes, he started to compel her. "Go home," he said. "Forget what you saw and heard here tonight. This never happened."

Jessica nodded and got into her car. Xavier went over to his father and pulled him to the side of the road as the car sped away to safety. Once the car was gone, Xavier looked to Damon. "What do you say we head home now?"

"How much did you hear?"

Xavier was quiet for a moment. "Your secret is safe with me."

Damon let out a laugh as he realized how long Xavier had been listening to him. "I know it will be."

"I miss it too."

Damon's eyes locked with his son's. "Really?" He asked. "You're not just saying that, are you?"

Xavier shook his head. "No, I really do miss it," he replied. "Sure, being a vampire has its perks, but there is a special feeling that comes with being human. That feeling is lost when you are going to live forever."

"I'm so sorry," Damon started apologizing. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

"It's ok, Dad," Xavier assured him.

"No, it's not," Damon said. "It's all my fault."

Xavier shook his head again. "It's not your fault," he said. "I made this decision, remember? I could have chosen to die, but I didn't. I did this to myself."

Damon put his hand on his son's shoulder and brought him into his embrace. "This isn't the life I wanted for you," he said.

Damon had always vowed that he would never be his father, that he would be a better father than Giuseppe ever was. Xavier's mother, Emma, had been one of the maids at the Salvatore Mansion, who had left after becoming pregnant. Damon only found out that he was going to be a father because he had run into Emma in town and discovered her secret. He offered to marry her, but was secretly relieved when she had said no. However, he stood by her side and helped her with money and finding a nice place to live. When the day came that his son was born, he reaffirmed that vow to not be Giuseppe and had done his best to uphold it. But, becoming a vampire changed things, and Damon couldn't be a part of his son's life as much as he wanted to be.

Like Stefan, Damon had wanted to hide his vampire nature from his son. Both Salvatore brothers had wanted to give their children as normal a life as possible. But, that was hard to accomplish when both of their children had been raised by a powerful witch. After Emma died when Xavier was five years old, Celia had taken him in and raised him alongside her own daughter. While Damon didn't always get along with Celia before he and Stefan turned, he had been extremely grateful that she had helped Xavier and never, ever forgot it. When Celia eventually died, Damon was actually more upset than he thought he would be, more upset than when Emma had died. Celia had helped Xavier become the man that Damon had always hoped he would be…and then Damon had to go and mess everything up.

"I know, Dad," Xavier said. He pulled away and squeezed Damon's shoulder. "Come on," he said. "Let's get you home."

* * *

 **To answer the question asked by Only reviewer - Yes! I do have actors in mind for Sera and Xavier! Sera is Adelaide Kane (though, I will admit, I tend to imagine her for a lot of my OCs. I absolutely loved her in Reign!) and Xavier is Logan Lerman. I also have someone in mind for Celia, and that would be Annabel Scholey.**

 **I hope that you enjoy this new chapter! Please Read and Review!**


	4. When Werewolves Kidnap

Introductions to the rest of Stefan and Damon's Mystic Falls friends/acquaintances happened in quick succession and weren't nearly as dangerous as how Xavier and Sera had met Elena. Damon had made good on his promise to Xavier that he would make up for his and Sera's lack of a "Welcome Home" greeting. He and Stefan had decided that the best and fastest way to get their children to meet the rest of the group and get completely up to speed on what they were dealing with in Mystic Falls was to have the whole Mystic Falls Gang over to the Boarding House. Sera and Xavier thought that the idea of what was basically a "Welcome Home!" party was utterly ridiculous, but they weren't about to argue.

Stefan and Damon had gone out to get food for everyone, leaving Sera and Xavier to get acquainted with their little group. Naturally, everyone was shocked by the revelation that the two Salvatore Brothers each had a child, but they tried not to show it too much. Sera and Xavier seemed to hit it off with their new group of potential friends. Caroline, in particular, was chatting Sera's ear off. Sera couldn't help but smile at the perky blonde who, incidentally, was also a vampire and she had a feeling that they were going to be friends for a long, long time.

"I just…I still can't wrap my head around the idea that Stefan and Damon have kids," Caroline said. "Even though you are both sitting right in front of me and Xavier is, like, a carbon copy of Damon."

"Good looks are in the DNA, I guess," Xavier said.

Sera rolled her eyes and smiled. "But, apparently, modesty is not."

"How did your parents meet each other?" Elena asked.

"My mother was a maid in the Salvatore Mansion," Xavier said. "Not a very romantic story, to be honest. But, Sera's parents, on the other hand…"

"They met each other in town," Sera said. "They were friends for a couple years before they fell in love and I came along. They probably would have married if Dad hadn't turned."

"So, before Stefan and Damon come back with the food, I've got to ask," Jeremy said. "What's it like growing up and knowing that your fathers are vampires?"

"It's not horrible," Xavier said. "Sera and I didn't find out the truth until we were teenagers. That's when we realized that nothing about them was changing."

"When you're younger, you don't notice things like that," Sera said. "But, eventually, you start figuring things out. When we realized that they hadn't changed at all in our entire lives, we asked my mother and she told us the truth."

"How did you take the news?" Matt asked. "Something like that isn't easy to swallow."

"It wasn't, but it was easier than you might think," Xavier said. "Primarily because of Sera's mother."

"Why?" Bonnie asked. "What does Sera's mother have to do with it?"

"Sera's mother was a witch." Everyone turned when they heard Damon's voice and saw the two Salvatore Brothers coming towards them with pizza. "And, a crazy powerful one at that. Where do you think that Sera got her magic from? Certainly not Stefan."

Sera closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again. "We hadn't gotten to that part yet, Uncle Damon."

"Wait, you're a witch?" Bonnie said.

Sera nodded. "Born and raised."

"So, let me get this straight," Caroline said. "You're a vampire and a witch? You're both?"

"The word you're looking for is 'hybrid'," Sera said. "Technically speaking, I shouldn't even exist. Or, I guess I should say that I should have lost my magic when I turned."

"Why?" Elena asked.

"According to Sera's mother, for as long as anyone can remember, it's been thought to be impossible for there to be a cross between a witch and a vampire," Stefan explained. "It was just one of those things that Nature deemed impossible. Sera's the first of her kind. The first witch-vampire hybrid."

"The only one, too," Xavier chimed in. "None of us have ever come across another."

"How did this happen?" Bonnie asked.

Sera shrugged. "No one really knows, to be honest."

"But," Stefan said, putting his hands on his daughter's shoulders. "We choose not to question it too much."

"So, you're like ultra-powerful then, right?" Caroline asked.

"I don't know about that," Sera said.

"Don't be modest, Sera," Damon said. "Sera was already an extremely powerful witch when she became a vampire. So, when she was turned, her witch powers strengthened her vampire powers and vice versa."

"But, I'm not invincible," Sera interjected. "I have my limits, just like anyone else. My specialty is what I like to call 'Battlefield Magic'. I'm really good at using magic to defend myself or those I care about. But, ritual magic is a different story. I sometimes have a hard time with that. My mom always told me that I got too distracted too easily and that I didn't have the patience for it. But, fortunately, I've been getting better at it as time goes on."

"That is way too cool," Caroline said, smiling at her new friend.

Sera allowed herself to smile back. "Yeah, it is pretty awesome."

"Who was your mother?" Matt asked.

"Her name was Celia," Sera replied.

"Celia?" Jeremy said. "I recognize that name. Johnathan Gilbert mentions her in his journals. He suspected her of being a witch, but had no evidence to back up his suspicions."

"My mother was extremely good at hiding her secrets," Sera said, somewhat cryptically. Her statement caused her to get looks from her family.

"Well, I think the 'Sera-is-a-hybrid' portion of the evening is over," Damon said. "Anyone care for pizza? Get it while it's hot!"

Sera breathed a small sigh of relief when the topic switched from her to everything that has been going on in Mystic Falls and how she and Xavier might be able to help. She never liked talking about herself, especially in regards to her magic. She was grateful that she still possessed her magic and she absolutely loved the fact that she was a hybrid, but she just didn't like being the center of attention. Plus, talking about her magic always led to her mother and, while Sera loved her mother with all her heart, there were certain things that Sera just couldn't answer. Things that she had promised her mother she would try and keep a secret for as long as possible.

Things that her family didn't even know about.

* * *

"So, how involved are we going to get in this?"

Sera sighed. She and Xavier were at the Grille. They had spent the morning talking with Damon and Stefan about John Gilbert, Elena's uncle who was apparently her actual father, and about Elena having some sort of agreement with Elijah. "I don't know, but I'm not ready to leave yet."

"If you think about it, none of this is really our concern," Xavier said. "As far as I'm concerned, Uncle Stefan is out of the tomb. We can both go back to what we were doing before my dad called you home."

"It's our concern because our fathers are concerned," Sera said. "We can't abandon our family, not when we now know how much stuff has been going on here."

"I suppose," Xavier said, unconvincingly.

"We need to help," Sera said. "It's the right thing to do."

"Even when there is an Original involved?" Xavier asked.

Sera stared at her cousin for a moment. "Yes, even when there is an Original involved."

"I've got to agree with Uncle Stefan, though," Xavier said. "We can't trust Elijah. We can't trust any Original, for that matter. They're Originals. They are super old and super powerful. We have no idea what their motives are."

"Can we just stop talking about Elijah and the Originals, please?!" Sera snapped.

Xavier stared at her for a moment. "What's your problem?"

Sera took a sip of her drink. "At the moment? You."

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," Xavier said. "Or, are you still jet lagged?"

Sera did not respond, taking another sip of her drink instead. Xavier's eyes went to the door as Damon and Elena walked in. "Oh, I think that things are about to get very interesting."

Sera's eyes followed her cousin's gaze. "Indeed," she said. She turned back to him and raised her glass to her lips. "Keep your eye on them," she continued. "Let me know if we have to intervene."

"You're not going to watch?"

"I don't need to," Sera said. "Besides, we don't want to intentionally make ourselves obvious."

"Hey, guys."

"Elena," Xavier said, as she approached the table. He nodded towards his father and John. "What's going on?"

Elena looked back at them and then back at the Salvatore cousins. "Damon is trying to get information from my Uncle John."

"Join us," Sera invited.

Elena slid into the seat next to Xavier as he continued to watch Damon and John. "It doesn't appear to be going too well."

"Yeah, well, I doubt Uncle John is just going to give Damon what he wants," Elena replied.

"What kind of information is he looking for?" Sera asked.

"About Klaus," Elena replied. "Apparently, Uncle John knows how we can get rid of him."

"Now, I'm even more intrigued," Xavier said.

Sera stared at Damon and John for a moment until her cell phone started ringing. She looked down at her phone and saw her father's name on the screen. "I'll be right back." Sera slid out of her seat and headed to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. "Dad? What's going on?"

 _"Caroline's been taken by the werewolves."_

"What?"

 _"They've kidnapped her and I need your help to get her back."_

"Yes, of course," Sera said. "Whatever you need."

 _"I have a plan. Meet me at Tyler Lockwood's mansion and then follow me from there. I'll explain on the way."_

"Got it," Sera said. "I'll be there as soon as I can." Hanging up her phone, Sera left the bathroom and headed back to Xavier and Elena. "We have a problem."

"Problem?" Damon said, walking up behind his niece. "What kind of problem?"

"It's Caroline," Sera said. "She's been taken."

"By who?" Elena demanded.

"The werewolves," Sera replied. "I'm going to meet my dad at the Lockwood Mansion. And, we're going to get her back."

"What?" Damon said. "Why would they do that?"

"Look, I don't have time to speculate the reasons why," Sera said. "I've got to go. You all stay here."

"I'm not going to let you go out there and fight werewolves," Damon said.

"Dad, come on," Xavier said. "We all know that Sera is more than capable of taking care of herself. There's a reason why Uncle Stefan called her, you know."

"Don't follow me," Sera warned. "I mean it."

Sera turned and walked out of the Grille. Damon turned to his son and Elena. "Elena, a word, please?"

Elena looked at Xavier, who shrugged, before following Damon into the bathroom. Xavier took a sip of his drink as John Gilbert came up to the table. "Where is Damon going with my daughter?"

"They're just going to talk," Xavier said. "No big deal. We have a little bit of a situation on our hands. That's all."

John glared at him before heading off to the bathroom himself. Xavier stayed put, knowing that there would be no use in him getting involved in whatever argument was about to ensue. He looked up when he saw his father come out of the bathroom and storm off towards the exit. He stood and ran after him. "Where are you going?"

"To the woods, obviously," Damon said.

"But, Sera said…"

"I don't care what your cousin said," Damon replied. "She may have magic, but that doesn't mean that she can't get hurt. We can't have both Stefan and Sera going up against a pack of wolves." He pointed to the door behind him. "You go home. Wait there."

Xavier said nothing as Damon turned and left the Grille. He turned back around and walked back to the table previously occupied by him, Sera, and Elena. He finished his drink, threw some money on the table, and then left the restaurant, completely content with the fact that he wasn't included in the upcoming battle with the werewolves.

* * *

Sera crept through the darkened woods, making her steps as quiet as physically possible. The plan was for Stefan and Tyler to pretend to make an exchange and then, at the right moment, Sera would intervene. With the trailer in sight, Sera kept herself hidden and watched as Stefan and Tyler made their appearance.

Then, Damon unexpectedly came onto the scene and things got significantly worse. Other werewolves came out of the woods, ready for an attack. Sera swore under her breath as Damon, Tyler, and Stefan came to the realization that they were outnumbered. She watched as Damon had Tyler go over to Caroline's captors and braced herself as the first attack was made. Damon lunged for Jules and the other werewolves started attacking Stefan and using a flame thrower.

That was her cue.

Closing her eyes for a moment and then opening them again, Sera's brown irises turned blood red, something that happened every time she used her magic and vampire powers. She turned her palms towards the ground and the earth automatically started shaking. The werewolves, Stefan, and Damon all fell to the ground and, as she came into view, the shaking stopped. She allowed the werewolves to come into a standing position once more.

"Mind if I cut in?"

The fighting began once more, now with werewolves throwing themselves at Sera. She snapped one werewolf's neck while he was in mid-air with a flick of her wrist. Another werewolf was thrown into a tree with a mere wave of Sera's hand. A third werewolf actually managed to knock her to the ground, but Sera plunged her hand into his chest and ripped his heart out before he had a chance to stake her. Tossing the heart and the body to the side, Sera stood once more and saw her father and uncle taking care of other werewolves in similar fashions.

Stefan's pain-filled cry drew Sera's attention away from other potential attackers and she watched as he fell to the ground, a werewolf standing over him. "Dad!" she yelled. She ran towards the werewolf, but was stopped by a stake embedded in her stomach, thrown by Brady. Sera fell to the ground, grabbing onto the stake in an attempt to pull it out. The sound of a gun cocking pulled her attention away from her own injury as she saw Jules point the weapon at Damon. Shots were fired and Damon fell onto his back.

At that moment, Caroline came out of the trailer, presumably having been released by Tyler, who had been missing for the entire battle. Sera managed to pull the stake out of her stomach at the same moment that Jules pinned Caroline to the outside of the trailer, with a gun at her neck. Throwing the stake to the side, Sera stood and, using her magic, threw Jules backwards into a tree. Sera walked over to the werewolf and stood over her as Jules looked up at her.

"What kind of vampire are you?"

Sera merely smiled. "I am so much more than just a vampire."

Just then, all of the werewolves still conscious started grabbing their heads and screaming in pain. Sera, Caroline, and Tyler, who was standing in the doorway of the trailer, all started looking around, trying to figure out where the source of the werewolves' pain was coming from. The three of them watched as a man came into view, his eyes closed, his head bent, and his hands out as if reciting a spell. Sera knew automatically that it was this man who was causing the werewolves' pain. Stefan and Damon started to recover from their injuries just as the man began to speak.

"Elijah made a promise to Elena,"** Jonas said. "I'm here to see it's upheld. You need to go."**

Sera closed her eyes and they turned back to their normal brown color. She followed Damon, Stefan, and Caroline out of the woods, leaving the werewolves lying on the ground behind her.

* * *

Showers always seemed to feel so much better after a fight in the woods.

Not that Sera had a ton of experience with that notion, but it was certainly true nonetheless. After returning to the Boarding House, and answering all of Xavier's questions about the fight as they climbed the stairs to her room, Sera had taken off her dirty clothes and got into the nice, warm shower. It was exactly what she needed to "recover" from the excitement. Sera had just gotten out of the shower when her cell phone started buzzing on her bed. "Hey, Caroline. What's up?"

 _"What are you doing tonight?"_

"Oh, I have big plans," Sera said, sarcastically.

 _"Then, you should come and join our sleepover."_

"Sleepover?"

 _"Yeah, with me, Elena, and Bonnie. You should come."_

"I don't know," Sera said. "This sounds like something you guys always do together…"

 _"Sera, you just helped to save my life. If that doesn't make you my friend, I don't know what else will. I want you to come and join us. We all do."_

Sera smiled. "Ok then, yeah. I'll be over in a half an hour."

 _"Great! I'll text you my address. See you soon!"_

Sera hung up the phone and threw it back on her bed. Xavier popped his head into his cousin's room and saw her smiling to herself. "What's that look for?"

Sera was still smiling as she looked at her cousin. "I'm going to a sleepover."

Xavier laughed a little. "Look at who is making friends!" He said. "Enjoy yourself, alright? I'll see you in the morning."

Sera waved at him as she grabbed her duffel bag and started throwing some clothes and toiletries in it. She hoped that her cousin was right. She hoped that she was making friends now that she was back at home for the foreseeable future. Because if there was one thing that Sera learned in all her years of being a vampire, it's that you could never have too many friends, especially friends who knew and accepted who and what you were without hesitation.

They were the best type of friends to have.

* * *

 **So, a little note about Sera being a hybrid: I know that the Heretics are considered to be the first witch-vampire hybrids in the show, but there is - to me - a big difference between them and Sera (siphoner vs. witch). This topic will be addressed more later on, but for now, the characters don't know that the Heretics exist, so I just want everyone to keep that in mind!**

 **Thank you for all of the follows and favorites of this story! It is much appreciated!**

 **I would love to hear some feedback from you all, though! Please leave me some reviews and let me know what you think!**

 **I hope that you enjoy this new chapter!**


	5. In Need of a Loophole

Sera could say that she was annoyed that Stefan decided to take Elena away for a couple days so soon after she returned home, but that would have made her sound petty and childish. They hadn't seen each other in over two years but why shouldn't her father go away for the weekend with his new girlfriend?

"Why don't you come?" Stefan suggested. His daughter was sitting on his bed as he packed a bag. "I hear that Elena's lake house is very nice."

"I'm not tagging along on what is clearly a romantic weekend," Sera said. "I heard what you and Elena discussed this morning and I am not an idiot."

Stefan zipped his bag closed and looked at her. "I'll make it up to you," he said. "I promise."

"Uh huh," Sera said. "How?"

"You said that you were staying in town, right?" Stefan asked. "I have time to figure something out."

Sera followed her father out of his room as he grabbed his bag and headed downstairs. "Why don't you let it be of my choosing?"

"Because I've been down that road before," Stefan said. "And, knowing you, you'll ask for something ridiculous."

Sera pretended to be shocked. "Me? Ask for something ridiculous? When have I ever done that?"

"I distinctly remember one birthday when I visited that you asked me for the Hope Diamond."

"I was ten!" Sera defended herself.

"And, most ten-year-olds ask for a pony," Stefan said.

"Which you ended up giving me instead, so it all worked out."

Stefan smiled as they got to the bottom of the stairs and he gave his daughter a hug. "Have a good weekend," he said. "Don't get into too much trouble while I'm gone, alright?"

"Last I checked, I'm here because _you_ got into trouble," Sera reminded him. "I should be saying that to you."

Stefan pulled away, smiling. "I won't if you won't."

"Deal," Sera said. "Have fun."

Stefan turned and headed to the door. Sera was about to head back upstairs when her phone started buzzing in her pocket. "Hey, Caroline. What's up?"

 _"Hey! Would you be up for helping us with a spell tonight?"_

Sera's eyes narrowed a little bit. "What kind of spell?"

 _"Nothing dangerous. Bonnie is going to try and get some information out of Luka and it wouldn't hurt to have some back up."_

Sera shrugged. "Yeah, sure, I can come over. Are you sure that Bonnie will be ok with it?"

 _"Oh yeah, no worries. Jeremy will be there too, so Xavier can come if he wants."_

Sera smiled. "You all have a lot of parties like this around here?"

She heard Caroline laugh. _"The next time I invite you somewhere it will be a lot more fun, I swear. Stop by around six?"_

"Sounds good, we'll be there."

Sera hung up the phone and slipped it back into her pocket. "Xavier!" she yelled as she started her climb up the stairs. "We're going to Caroline's tonight!"

"Why?" Xavier yelled back.

Sera got to the top of the stairs and went to her cousin's room. "Because they may or may not need my help and you're coming with me."

Xavier sighed as he flipped through the comic book he was reading. "Fine," he said. "I'll go. I'm sure I'll be really useful."

Sera rolled her eyes. "Don't be like that," she said. "We have to be there by six, so be ready before that."

"Yes, madam."

* * *

"Hey, guys! Glad you could make it!" Jeremy stepped aside and allowed Xavier and Sera to enter Caroline's house. He was carrying a bowl of water with him, presumably for the spell. "We're almost done setting up."

They rounded the corner and stepped into the living room. Luka was lying on the floor, unconscious, and was surrounded by burning candles. Caroline and Bonnie were kneeling beside him. "This takes me back," Xavier said. "How long has it been since we've seen a scene like this?"

"Have you done this before?" Bonnie asked, directing the question to Sera.

"Once or twice," Sera replied. "Never really had much of a use for it after the whole becoming-a-hybrid thing happened. At that point, people just told me what I wanted to know because they were afraid."

"So, if something goes wrong, you can step in?"

Sera nodded. "I'll be waiting in the wings."

Bonnie dipped her fingers in the water and put them to Luka's head. The flames automatically grew bigger as the spell began to do its job. They all sat on the ground, as Luka began to beg Bonnie to stop the spell. But, Bonnie refused to do so. Finally, Luka cooperated and the questioning began.

"Why are you working with Elijah?"** Bonnie asked.

"Klaus,"** Luka replied. "We both want him dead."**

Sera stiffened slightly. Xavier noticed his cousin's reaction out of the corner of his eye.

"You want to kill Klaus too?"** Bonnie asked. "Why?"**

"Because he has her. We have to get her away from him."**

"Who are you talking about?"**

"My sister."**

"Why does he have her?"**

"He's searching for a way to undo the curse without the doppelganger,"** Luka replied. "He's forced generations of witches to help him for centuries."**

Sera sat up straighter. That was an interesting new piece of information. How did Klaus think he would manage to do that? Sera's eyes met briefly with Caroline's, but neither one of them said anything because Bonnie asked another question.

"What has Elijah promised you?"**

"If we help Elijah kill Klaus, he's promised to return her to us."**

"And, how do you kill Klaus?"** Bonnie asked. "How do you kill an Original vampire?"**

Sera's eyes were focused right on Luka. He couldn't possibly know, could he? None of the Originals would ever give away that precious bit of information. She felt her heart beat faster in her chest as she waited for Luka's response.

"He'll kill me if I tell you,"** Luka said. "Don't make me."**

She let out a breath that she didn't realize she had been holding when Luka neglected to reveal the answer.

"It's ok, Bonnie,"** Jeremy said. "We can find another way."**

"No,"** Bonnie said.

"Bonnie, come on," Sera said. "Aren't you putting the poor guy through enough?"

Xavier looked at his cousin, curious about why she would want Bonnie to stop when they were close to finding out the secret way to kill an Original. Bonnie opened her eyes and looked at Sera. "We need this information," she said. "I'm not stopping now."

Sera looked back down at Luka as Bonnie closed her eyes and continued. "How will you kill Klaus?"**

"After the sacrifice, Klaus will be vulnerable,"** Luka explained. "Weak. It's our only chance."**

"After the sacrifice?"** Caroline said. "You mean…"**

"After?"**

"Klaus will be vulnerable."**

"Elena will be dead."**

"Yes,"** Luka said. "Elena has to die."**

"That's not an option," Caroline said. Bonnie released Luka from the spell and they left him unconscious on the floor. "There has to be something we can do."

"Sera, do you know of anything that we can do to stop Klaus from killing Elena?" Jeremy asked, desperately. "Your mother was a powerful witch. Maybe there is something that she knew that could help us?"

"It's certainly possible, but I don't want to make any promises that I can't keep," Sera replied. "My mother knew many things, but even she wasn't all-knowing. She had her limits just like anyone else."

"Anything you could find would be great," Caroline said.

Sera nodded. "I'll look for my mother's grimoire when I get home."

"Thank you," Jeremy said.

Sera and Xavier stood to leave. "No problem," Sera assured him. "I'll let you guys know if I find anything, I promise."

* * *

"Why is it that there always has to be complications?"

Sera sighed as they walked through the front door of the Boarding House. "Because life isn't easy."

"That's true enough," Xavier said. "Do you really think that your mom knows something that could give us some sort of loophole to this situation?"

"Not really, but I didn't want to tell them that," Sera said. "A curse is a curse. There is usually one way to enact it and one way to break it. But, it doesn't hurt to at least take a look and do some research. Maybe my mom did know something about this. I'll have to take a look in her grimoire."

Xavier was quiet for a moment. "You know the Originals, don't you?"

Sera looked at her cousin and then looked away. "Don't be ridiculous," she said. "Where would I have met an Original?"

"I don't know, but it makes sense," Xavier said. "It explains why you don't like talking about the Originals and why you seemed uncomfortable by all this talk of killing Klaus at Caroline's tonight."

"I think you are seeing something that isn't there," Sera said. "Getting involved with Originals isn't the best idea in the world, in case you hadn't noticed. We should all be cautious about what we do involving them."

"Yeah, but you seem more cautious than the rest of us."

Sera shrugged. "Perhaps I just have a more reasonable head on my shoulders."

"You do realize that, if Klaus manages to break his curse, it wouldn't be good for any of us, right?" Xavier said. "We need to make sure that he doesn't get the chance."

"Coming from the man who didn't want to get involved?"

Xavier sighed. "Well, I can't leave when there is a chance that an innocent girl might die," he replied. "I'm not a monster, you know."

Sera opened the door to the Boarding House and they both walked inside. "Chivalry isn't dead, I guess."

The two of them walked into the Library to find Damon cleaning up the remnants of what was clearly a violent night. "What the hell happened here?" Xavier asked.

Damon turned and saw his niece and son standing behind him. "Oh, you know, the usual," he said. "Get tortured by werewolves, saved by an Original. Just your average night at the Salvatore House." He went back to what he was doing. "How was it at Caroline's?"

"Not great," Sera said. "Apparently, the way to break Klaus's curse involves Elena's death."

Damon froze and turned back to face Sera and Xavier. "What?"

"Sera is going to check and see if Celia's grimoire has anything in it that might give us a loophole," Xavier said. "But, either way, we can't allow Klaus to succeed."

"So, Elijah was planning on having Elena die so he could kill Klaus?" Damon asked.

"Apparently," Xavier confirmed.

"I've got to go and do some research. You two got this mess down here?"

Without waiting for a response, Sera turned and headed up to her room. Xavier looked at his father. "Has she been acting strange to you?"

Damon shrugged. "Not that I've noticed," he replied. "Why?"

Xavier shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "I just feel like she's hiding something from us."

"Like what?"

"I think she knows the Originals."

"What? Like intimately?" Damon asked. "How would that have happened?"

"I don't know," Xavier said, again. "But, I just have this feeling."

"If Sera knows the Originals, why wouldn't she say anything?" Damon asked. "Especially given the fact that we are currently dealing with Elijah and are trying to find a way to kill Klaus."

Xavier shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know."

Damon put his hand on his son's shoulder. "I'm sure it's nothing," he said. "Sera wouldn't keep something like that from us."

"But, what if she is?"

Damon sighed. "Then, I am sure that she has her reasons."

"You're not curious?"

"Of course I am," Damon said. "But, there's nothing we can do about it tonight. Let's just deal with one problem at a time, alright?" Damon pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I've got to call your uncle and tell him what's going on with Elena and the sacrifice."

Xavier nodded as he turned to head up the stairs. "Good night, Dad."

"Night."

Xavier climbed the stairs to his room, trying to let his suspicions about Sera's knowledge of the Originals rest for the night. He was too tired to have it stop him from sleeping. Besides, what if he was seeing something that didn't exist? What if Sera was just nervous about getting too involved in Original problems? What if he was overreacting?

But, what if he wasn't?

* * *

 **I hope that you enjoy this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	6. Not an Ideal Reunion

Sera could have kicked herself for letting her mask slip. She knew that her secret wasn't going to be kept that way for much longer.

It was bound to happen, though, now that she thought about it. She had gotten herself mixed up in a situation that was certain to reveal it at some point. It was only a matter of time. If she was being honest with herself, it had been only a matter of time for as long as she could remember. But, now that Xavier had his suspicions, she knew he was going to be keeping a watchful eye over her until she confirmed them for him. She had to make sure that her mask didn't slip again until she was ready for the truth to come out.

The only thing she was scared about was how her family would react to her deception. She knew that it wasn't going to go over well, particularly with Stefan. She hoped that he would understand why she couldn't tell him. She hoped that they, and the rest of her new friends, would still feel that they could trust her. She was still helping them with their plan, after all. And, she had no intention of standing in the way if they succeeded in killing Klaus. After all, if it was what Elijah wanted, who was she to stop him? Perhaps that would gain her some favorable points.

But, either way, she prepared herself for what was certain to come next: for her secret – her mother's secret – to be revealed.

* * *

"You know what I realized last night?"

Sera didn't look up from her mother's grimoire when she heard Xavier's question. "What?"

"That Elena had to have agreed to die," Xavier replied, sitting down on Sera's bed. "Elijah had to have told her what was going to happen so she had to have known all along that his plan to kill Klaus required her death."

Sera looked up at her cousin. "Interesting…" she said. "I didn't initially think her the 'sacrificial hero' type, but I apparently misjudged her."

"Same here," Xavier said. "Even more of a reason to try and find a loophole. Something tells me that Elena won't let everyone finding this out stop her from doing what she thinks she needs to do."

"Agreed," Sera said. She rubbed her eyes and stood. "But, I've been searching through this book for the last two hours and I need a break and a snack."

"I take it that means that you haven't found anything yet," Xavier said, following her out of her room.

"Not yet," Sera said. "But, I'm not even half-way through the book, so there's still a chance." Sera stopped when she felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. "Hey, Dad," she said. "How goes the romantic weekend?"

 _"Tell me that you are looking for something to get us out of this."_

"Don't you know me at all by now?"

 _"Any luck?"_

Sera sighed as she and Xavier continued on their trek downstairs. "Not yet," she replied. "Mom knew a lot of spells, Dad. It's going to take me some time to get through her grimoire."

 _"Time isn't necessarily something that we have."_

"I understand that," Sera replied. She and Xavier headed down into the basement to raid Stefan's freezer of blood. Xavier tossed her a bag of blood and she caught it with one hand. "I'm working on it."

 _"Sorry, Sera. I don't mean to sound agitated with you."_

"It's fine," she said, as she and Xavier headed back upstairs. "I know that you are concerned for Elena. But, Mom may not have a solution for this."

 _"I know, I know."_

"Ok," Sera said. She and Xavier stopped when they saw Damon coming through the front door. "Look, I've got to go. Uncle Damon just got home."

 _"Love you."_

"Love you too, Dad."

Sera hung up the phone and slipped it back into her pocket. She took a sip of blood as Damon walked over to them. "We are having a dinner party."

Xavier swallowed. "I'm sorry, what?" He said. "Since when does Damon Salvatore have dinner parties?"

"Andie's idea," Damon said. "Invitees include Jenna, Alaric, and Elijah. Plus me, of course. You two are invited, obviously."

"As fun as that sounds," Sera said. "I've still got research to do. I'll pass."

"Party pooper," Damon said. "Xavier?"

"I'm not going if she's not going," Xavier said, pointing to his cousin. "I think I'll help her go through Celia's spells."

Damon rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said. "But, it ought to be a very interesting night."

"And, we'll be right upstairs."

Damon watched as his son and niece headed back upstairs before turning to start preparing for the arrival of his guests.

* * *

"I think it's time for another break."

Sera, again, did not look up from her mother's spell book. "You just want to spy on the party."

"Perhaps."

"You could have gone."

"No, no," Xavier said. "I'm not going to get stuck at one of those things by myself."

Sera turned when her phone started vibrating on her desk. "Dad, I still haven't found a spell yet."

 _"Where is your uncle?"_

"Downstairs at his dinner party, why?"

 _"I need you to stop him."_

"Stop him from what?" Sera asked. "Dad, you're not making any sense."

 _"Damon has the dagger that can kill an Original and he is planning on using it on Elijah tonight. If he does that, he will die. You need to get down there and stop him."_

Xavier watched as the color started to drain from Sera's face. "Sera, what is it? What's wrong?"

"When were you going to tell us this?" Sera demanded.

 _"I don't know, but that's not important now. Just get down there and stop your uncle before he accidentally kills himself!"_

Sera hung up the phone and raced out of her room, with Xavier following close behind. "Sera, catch me up!"

"Uncle Damon has the dagger that kills an Original and, if he uses it tonight, he will die."

"What?" Xavier said. "Since when do they…?"

"I don't know," Sera cut him off. "But, we need to stop him."

When they got to the bottom of the stairs, they practically ran into Alaric. "Whoa, whoa," he said. "What's going on?" Sera quickly told him what Stefan told her and Alaric looked back in the direction of the library. "I'll take care of this," he said.

Sera and Xavier watched him head back towards the library and they headed back upstairs. "You can't possibly tell me that we are going back to research?" Xavier said.

"No," Sera replied. "But, we also don't need to make our presence known to the rest of the guests. We'll hang out upstairs and listen, that way we can jump in if necessary."

Content with that answer, Xavier followed Sera back upstairs and they stopped at the balcony overlooking the living room, close enough to the dining room to hear everything that was going on with or without Vampire Hearing and close enough to intervene quickly if necessary.

What they weren't expecting was for Alaric to dagger Elijah instead.

Sera and Xavier raced downstairs as Damon moved Elijah's body to the cellar. "Xavier, give me a hand," Damon said. "I need you to open the door."

Sera had her hand over her mouth as Elijah was carried by her and noticed one important detail. The dagger. It was missing from Elijah's chest. Even if Damon locked Elijah up, he wouldn't stay that way for long. Looking behind her, she noticed the dagger still on the dining room table. She raced upstairs and grabbed her car keys and a jacket from her bedroom. As she headed back downstairs, she saw Xavier and Damon coming up from the basement. "Everything under control?"

"He's locked up," Damon confirmed. "Where are you going?"

"I'm hungry," Sera said. She motioned to Xavier. "We skipped dinner, so I'm going to head out and get a pizza."

"Oh, fantastic," Xavier said. "Make it an extra large. But, you can pick the toppings."

"You two could have had the food from the party," Damon said.

"Why would we have that when we can get pizza?"

Damon rolled his eyes at his son's response. He looked at his niece, who shrugged as she headed out the door. "He has a point, Uncle Damon."

"Don't help him!"

Sera walked over to her car and unlocked it, slipping into her black leather jacket before opening the door. She got into the car and started the engine, trying not to act in as much of a hurry as she actually was. Elijah was not going to be happy when he woke up and he was going to want revenge.

She knew exactly where Elijah was going to head next.

* * *

Stefan had been right. Elena's lake house did look very nice. Sera was tempted to knock on the front door and make her presence known to them, but that would have messed up her plan and would have raised a lot of questions that she didn't want to have to deal with answering. So, instead, she kept to the shadows of the trees, waiting for the Original to make his presence known.

Did she feel guilty for not telling the others about the dagger? Yes, a bit. But, Sera wanted to talk to Elijah, face to face. It was time for him to know that she was in town, even if she wasn't ready or willing to tell the others that she knew him. Perhaps, if he knew that she was in town, Elijah would stop in his quest to kill Klaus and would leave everyone in Mystic Falls alone. It was a long shot, but it was worth a try.

It wasn't long before she saw Elijah's profile step out from the shadows. She took in a deep breath. She hadn't seen him in decades, and while nothing really changed, it was still strange to see him again. "Hello, Elijah."

Elijah turned his head slightly at the sound of the familiar voice. "Serafina?" He said. The unexpected sight of her after so much time apart nearly took his breath away. "It's been so long…"

Sera smiled a little. "I've missed you too," she said. "I've even missed the others, believe it or not."

Elijah cracked a smile himself. "Now, that is hard to believe," he teased. "I regret that this is how we have to reunite after so long apart. I always pictured it less…" Elijah looked at their surroundings. "Dark and menacing."

Sera shrugged. "It's not my ideal reunion plan either," she said. "But, this is what life has presented us with." Sera walked up to him, but still kept herself out of the sight of the house's windows. "I know why you're here," she said. "I won't let you hurt them."

"You were at the dinner party, weren't you?"

"Upstairs, actually," Sera replied. "Had I known of what was planned for you tonight, I would have made sure to make an appearance."

"Then you know why I must do this."

"And, you know why I can't let you."

Elijah almost smiled. "How do you plan to stop me?"

Sera stared at him as her brown irises turned blood red. "By whatever means necessary."

Elijah rushed at Sera, grabbing her neck and pinning her against a tree. "Don't threaten me, Serafina," he said.

"Or what?" Sera asked, though her voice came out strained. "You'll kill me? Like you're planning on killing Klaus?"

Elijah released his grip on her neck. "Of course not," he said. "You know that I would never hurt you. But, I know that you can't stop me without revealing your secret."

Sera rubbed her neck and swallowed as Elijah turned and started to walk away from her. "It's your secret too," she said. "I'm only keeping the damn secret because of you!"

"It's for your own protection!"

Sera laughed. "And, exactly how is that working out for me, huh?" she asked. She blinked and her eyes went back to their normal color. "I've had to carry this around with me for years, not being able to tell even my own father! Can you even imagine what that's like?"

Elijah swallowed, but refused to meet Sera's gaze. "Of course I do."

"Then, you owe me," she said. "Do not hurt them. Give me your word."

"Serafina…"

"You once said that you didn't want me mixed up in your family's drama," Sera said. "Yet, here I am, right in the middle of it, despite all of the years of secrets and avoiding each other because you decided to pick a fight with my father and uncle."

"They're the ones that are picking the fight," Elijah said. "I had an agreement with Elena."

"Oh, like you didn't expect them to try and get her out of it?" Sera said.

Elijah shrugged and looked back at the house. "Collateral damage for a much greater good."

"Not for me," Sera said.

Elijah looked back at Sera and saw the determined look in her eyes. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"Of course not," Sera said. "Give me your word, Elijah. Promise me that you will not hurt my father and Elena."

Elijah stared at her for a moment before responding. "You have my word."

Sera nodded once. "Good," she said. "We have to pretend like this conversation never happened. Go up there and allow Elena to try and negotiate another deal. No one can know that I was here tonight."

Elijah watched as Sera turned to walk away. "Tell them."

Sera stopped and turned back around. "What?"

"Tell them, if you want," Elijah said. "Unburden yourself."

Sera stared at him for a moment. "I don't think I have much of a choice now," she replied. "But, I made a promise to my mother and I intend to keep that promise for as long as I can." She looked towards the house, briefly, before looking back at Elijah. "Now, if you would excuse me, I have to go and get a pizza."

Elijah watched as Sera turned and left before turning back to face the house. He bent down and picked up a handful of pebbles, looking over his shoulder to make sure that Sera was gone before breaking the door down.

* * *

 **Getting closer to finding out how Sera knows the Originals! I'd love to know if you guys have any guesses as to what the connection might be!**

 **I would like to acknowledge and apologize for a continuity error that I noticed when I was going through this story. I made a mistake when I included Matt in the chapter where Sera and Xavier meet the Gang, when in the show he hasn't found out about vampires and magic and such yet. Fortunately, it was a relatively minor thing, as he was only mentioned about two times in that chapter, but I am sorry for the mistake nonetheless!**

 **I hope that you enjoy this new chapter! Please review!**


	7. Girls Night, Interrupted

Sera and Xavier had only heard stories of the woman who had turned their fathers into vampires but they had never expected to meet her in person. Yet, here she was, standing in the Boarding House, freaking out over the fact that they existed. Somehow, that topic had taken precedence over the fact that Katherine had been screwing with everyone's minds that morning by pretending to be Elena.

"You have children?!"

Stefan and Damon looked back at their children and then at the woman who had changed their lives forever. "Yeah, we do," Damon replied. "And, because of you, we couldn't see them grow up. So, thanks for that."

Katherine glared at Damon for a moment before her eyes landed on Xavier. "Someone inherited Daddy's good looks." She smiled at him in a way Xavier was certain got his father into her bed multiple times.

"Sorry," Xavier said. "I don't do old and crazy."

Katherine's smile vanished from her face. "Inherited Daddy's sass too, I see." Her eyes then landed on Sera. "And, you must be Celia's daughter," she said. "You look just like her. I never did like your mother much."

"The feeling was mutual," Sera replied.

Katherine gave Sera a once over before looking at Stefan. "Too much like her mother for her own good."

Stefan rolled his eyes as Sera turned to look at her father. "Seriously, can I kill her?"

"Stefan, I want her out of here," Elena said. "Now."

"You need me, Elena,"** Katherine said. "You all do."**

"Like hell,"** Stefan replied.

"We all want the same thing,"** Katherine said. "Klaus dead. Here you all are, running around like chickens with their heads cut off."**

Sera crossed her arms. "We'll manage just fine without you."

Katherine arched an eyebrow at Sera. "Will you?" She looked back at the others. "Do you know where Klaus is? When he's coming? What he looks like?"**

Xavier looked at his cousin to see her reaction to Katherine's questions, but Sera's face showed him nothing. He turned back to Katherine when Damon spoke. "If you know something, say it or get out."**

Then, Katherine threatened Elena's aunt, Jenna, so they knew that they had to take her seriously. Though none of them liked it, they knew that they had to go along with Katherine and appease her as long as possible. The group split off. Stefan and Elena headed to school, while Katherine followed Damon downstairs. Xavier followed his cousin to her bedroom, where she grabbed her backpack before heading outside so that she could meet Stefan and Elena at school.

"You're going to have a hell of a day today," Sera said, as Xavier walked her out to her car. "I'm not sorry at all that I have to miss it."

"I still don't see why you feel the need to start school when the year is practically over," Xavier said. "Don't you still need to search Celia's grimoire for help with the whole Klaus thing?"

"Yeah, but going to school means that I don't have to deal with Katherine," Sera said, opening the door to her black jeep and getting inside. "And, it also means that I can have friends and a life outside of dramatic magic crap."

Xavier rolled his eyes. "I'm going to be texting you all day, you know."

"Which is why my phone is going on silent the moment I get there."

Sera closed the door and drove off, leaving Xavier alone with his father and Katherine. Groaning, he re-entered the Boarding House and the stench of burning flesh attacked his nose. "What the hell?"

"Tried to burn Elijah's body," Damon said, coming up from the basement. "Didn't work."

"Great," Xavier said. "Now, the house stinks."

"It will air out eventually," Damon said. "Come on, we have other things we need to do."

"You mean setting up a guest room for your insane ex?"

"Not at the top of my to-do list today," Damon said. "She can sleep outside for all I care."

Xavier laughed as he moved to open the windows to air the house out.

* * *

Sera had come to the conclusion that, if Elijah should ever awaken, he would expect her to help him kill Klaus.

She, Stefan, and Bonnie had met with Jonas and Luka at the Grille to talk to them about becoming allied against the Originals. And, while she kept her mouth shut for a good portion of the conversation, what was revealed by Jonas and Luka was interesting, to say the least. Apparently, Elijah believed that a witch channeling enough power would be able to kill Klaus.

Whoever Elijah initially intended for that witch to be was surely off the hook now. Because Sera was in town…and Sera already had powerful magic.

"Like the power you get from a spot marked with a hundred dead witches?"** She and Stefan had returned to the Boarding House and were filling Damon, Katherine, and Xavier in on what they had discovered.

"We just need to find it."**

Damon nodded towards Sera. "So, do we have to keep an extra watchful eye over you now?"

"Not if Elijah stays daggered downstairs," Sera replied. "Besides, I'm sure that Elijah already had someone in mind for the job. We should be watching over all the witches we know, just in case."

"Wait," Katherine said. "You have magic? But, you're a vampire. How is that possible?"

Sera turned her gaze onto her. "Look who's out of the loop now." Katherine rolled her eyes. Sera turned back to her family and smiled. "I've got to go and get ready," she said. "You all have fun tonight."

"Where are you going?" Stefan asked.

"Out," Sera replied. "I got invited to Girls Night at school today and I am going to take the night off from magic research. You all have fun with the journals."

Katherine looked at Stefan, Damon, and Xavier as Sera left the room. "She is just as annoying as her mother."

"A: Don't call my daughter annoying," Stefan said, starting to count off of his fingers. "B: You didn't know Celia well enough to judge her like you do, and C: You just hate Celia because she got what you will never have."

Xavier looked down at the floor to hide his laughter, but Katherine was not amused. Damon, however, smiled. "Let's get to work with these journals, shall we?"

* * *

Girls Night at Elena's had turned into Girls Night at the Grille, but Sera didn't care. She was just happy to be out with her new friends and not poring over her mother's grimoire looking for a loophole that, as far as she knew, didn't exist. But, she didn't have to worry about that right now. All she had to do was have fun while the others researched the Gilbert Journals.

Things only got awkward when Alaric and Matt both appeared at the Grille too. Matt's presence was to be expected – he did work there, after all – but Alaric's wasn't. Jenna went to the bar to get a drink, leaving Caroline, Bonnie, Elena, and Sera standing in the crowd of people, talking to Caroline about how she should be honest with Matt about her feelings.

Sera knew that she wasn't the poster child of being honest with those that she loved. She still had yet to tell them her biggest secret, but since she planned on doing so at some point relatively soon, she felt that her advice could still be useful without branding her a hypocrite.

"Elena's right," Sera said. "You should be honest with him, Caroline. He deserves that much."

Caroline looked back at the stage as the song ended and then took off her jacket and handed it to Elena. They watched her as she marched onto the stage and Jenna rejoined him. The crowd went silent during Caroline's speech and when Caroline said that she was going to sing, Sera and her new friends looked at each other and then back at Caroline.

Sera was amazed by Caroline's singing and felt herself smiling. And, when Matt joined her on the stage and kissed her, Sera started cheering and clapping along with the rest of the crowd. It was the happiest and most carefree moment she had experienced since she had returned home and she was enjoying every bit of it.

With Caroline spending time with Matt in the bathroom, and Elena giving Bonnie her permission to date Jeremy, Sera was buying herself a drink at the bar when all of the lightbulbs started to blow. The Grille plunged into darkness.

Sera rolled her eyes. "Great," she said. She moved to pick up her drink when all of the glasses on the bar smashed and the bar erupted into flames, almost burning Sera's hand. Everyone was screaming and racing for the doors. Closing her eyes, they changed from brown to blood red as she turned to confront whoever it was that was attacking them.

She heard Elena call out Jonas's name and spotted her standing with Stefan as she tried to talk Jonas down. From what she could gather, Luka had somehow died, but she was going to have to find out more about that later. Jonas wouldn't listen to Elena, however, and he made the flames burning behind Sera grow even more. Stefan pulled Elena away from Jonas as Caroline made an attack. But, Jonas got the jump on her by using his magic to give her a migraine. Matt raced for Jonas, trying to get him to stop hurting Caroline, but Jonas used a broken bottle to stab Matt's neck.

With one hand, Sera doused the flames and, with the other, she threw Jonas into the wall. As Caroline crawled over to the dying Matt, Sera stalked over to Jonas like a beast would its prey. Jonas looked up at her. "You…" he said. "How can it be…?"

"I've been asking myself that for over a hundred years," Sera said. She used her magic to give Jonas a taste of his own medicine. "I don't care what happened to you tonight. You don't go after innocent people just because you're pissed off."

"My son…is dead…" Jonas said, through the pain.

Sera shrugged. "Something tells me it's partially your fault."

Jonas gritted his teeth and, though Sera was still using her magic on him, used his own magic to throw her into the wall of bottles behind the charred bar. As Sera fell to the ground, surrounded by bits of broken glass, Jonas used the opportunity to escape. Sera cursed under her breath as she raced over to Caroline, who was attempting to heal Matt. "How is he?"

"I fed him some of my blood," Caroline said. "I'll take care of him. You go. Go after Dr. Martin."

Sera looked from Caroline, to Matt, and back again before nodding and using her Vampire Speed to chase after the revenge-seeking doctor.

* * *

Sera raced into Elena's house and saw Stefan, Bonnie and Jeremy coming towards her. "Sera, are you alright?" Stefan asked, taking in Sera's cuts and bruises. "What happened?"

"Dr. Martin escaped from the Grille," Sera said. "If he's not here already, I think he will be here soon."

They all looked to the second floor when they heard what sounded like a fight taking place upstairs. Stefan, Bonnie, and Sera took the stairs two at a time until they saw Katherine rip out Jonas's throat. Katherine looked at them with an almost smug look on her face. "You're welcome."**

Sera resisted rolling her eyes as Bonnie went over to Jonas's body, telling Katherine that she didn't need to kill him. Then, all of a sudden, Jonas was grabbing Bonnie's head and she started screaming. As Katherine and Stefan moved to pull Jonas off of Bonnie, Sera flicked her wrist and snapped Jonas's neck. Leaning against the door frame, suddenly tired, Sera looked at the three of them. "You're welcome."

* * *

"Well, you've had quite the exciting night."

Sera swallowed the last gulp of blood from her glass and the last of her cuts healed as Xavier came into her room. "Yeah," she said. "Girls Night was not exactly what I thought it was going to be."

"Guess it comes with the territory of Mystic Falls," Xavier said.

"It was going well, at first," Sera said. "It was actually relatively normal. But, I hear that you had an interesting night as well."

"Oh yeah," Xavier said. "An invisible witch trying to resurrect a dead Original and then said invisible witch dying by flame thrower. You could say that broke up the hum drum of researching the Gilbert Journals."

"Did you guys manage to find anything?"

"Dad and Uncle Stefan did," Xavier said. "I'm sure they'll tell us what it is soon enough. They got a little distracted by the events of the evening."

"Haven't we all," Sera mumbled, putting her empty glass on her bedside table.

"Damn, this one's taken too!"

Xavier and Sera turned to find Katherine standing in the doorway. "Can we help you with something?" Sera asked.

"Damon kicked me out of his room," Katherine said. "Told me to go find another one."

"Oh, so you're staying with us?" Xavier said. "Wonderful."

Katherine ignored Xavier's sarcastic comment. "But, so far, I've only been able to find this room and one that I presume is Xavier's room, given the amount of dirty laundry piled up in the corner on the floor."

"I've been distracted as of late," Xavier defended himself. "My father's insane ex decided to move in."

Katherine glared at him as Sera spoke. "There are more rooms where that came from," Sera said. "Good luck."

Before Katherine could say another word, Sera twisted her wrist and the door slammed shut in Katherine's face. Xavier laughed. "That was awesome."

Sera smiled and shrugged as she reached over to her bedside table once more and picked up a book. "I try."

"This is going to suck having her stay here," Xavier said.

"Pray that it won't be for long," Sera said, opening the book to where her bookmark was.

"I'm keeping my fingers crossed." Xavier stood and moved to leave the room. "Night."

* * *

 **I hope that you like this chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	8. A House on Loan

With Xavier with Stefan and Elena at the luncheon at the Lockwood Mansion, Sera found herself heading to the spot of the witch massacre with Damon, Jeremy, and Bonnie.

The three of them had gone back to the apartment where Jonas and Luka had lived to find not only Luka's burned body, but also a harnessing spell that would allow Bonnie to channel the power of the dead witches. With both Bonnie's power and Sera's power combined, they were sure that they would be able to accomplish the task at hand.

"Wonderful," Sera said, as they walked towards the big mansion. "Random decaying house in the middle of nowhere. This doesn't spell danger."

"Relax," Damon said. "It's daylight. Things only tend to go bump in the night."

"Ha. Ha."

The house looked even worse on the inside than it did on the outside. There was nothing to suggest that anyone had once lived in it. Damon led the way, with Sera bringing up the rear. Damon entered a room with a ray of sunlight shining through a window and, when he turned back to face his companions, he found himself unable to move.

"Alright, very funny," he said. "Which one of you witches is doing this? I need it to stop right now."

"We're not doing anything," Bonnie replied.

"I can't move,"** Damon said. Sera's eyes narrowed as Damon's skin suddenly began to burn. "My ring's not working."**

"What the hell?" Sera muttered, looking around her as if some solution might present itself.

"Would one of you please do something?" Damon asked, his voice clearly pained.

Bonnie closed her eyes and concentrated and, within a moment or two, Damon was set free and his ring began working once more. "I don't think the witches like you being here."**

"I guess this is the right place,"** Jeremy chimed in.

Damon looked at his niece. "How are you not getting frozen or burned or something?"

"Because I'm a witch?" Sera suggested. "How am I supposed to know? I guess they like me."

Damon made a face at her and then pointed at the door. "I'm gonna go wait outside."**

They waited until Damon was outside before continuing. "Shall we?" Sera said. "God only knows how long before they decide they don't like me and kick me out too."

"If they didn't do it already, I think you're pretty safe," Bonnie said.

"Yeah, well, being an impossibility of nature tends to rub people the wrong way," Sera said. "It's only a matter of time, I'm sure."

"Then, let's not waste any more of it," Jeremy said. "Let's do this and get out of here."

* * *

To Sera's surprise, the dead witches actually let her stay and she watched as Bonnie performed the spell and gained access to their power. She didn't stay for much longer after the spell finished, however, because she got a phone call from Xavier that the Luncheon had not gone smoothly at all.

"You know, I actually thought that we would get through the event without any sort of drama," Xavier said. He and Sera were following Damon and Stefan to where they thought Elena had been taken. "Everything seemed to be going fine. Elena was making a nice speech and then, all of a sudden, BOOM! John Gilbert fell down the stairs and broke his neck, Elena gets kidnapped, and Uncle Stefan gets drugged."

"If it makes you feel any better, Bonnie was able to gain access to the magic of the dead witches," Sera said. "A truly horrifying process, but at least she can tap into their magic now."

"That's the one good thing to come out of today," Xavier replied.

They pulled up behind Stefan and Damon and got out of the car, heading up to the house alongside them.

"I think we should all take turns in how we kill Katherine," Xavier suggested.

"Not a bad idea," Damon said. "Stefan, what do you think?"

"Let's just focus on getting Elena and getting out of here," Stefan said.

"Fine," Sera said. "Xavier and I will take care of Katherine then. You two bodyguards can carry Elena off back to safety."

Once inside, the four of them split up to search the house for any sign of Elena. They searched every corner of the house, but found nothing. There was no sign that anyone had been there except for Isobel's suitcases by the door. After leaving Damon and Stefan at Isobel's abandoned house, Sera and Xavier had spent an additional half an hour searching the town for any sign of Elena before they got a call from Stefan saying that she was safe and sound back at the Boarding House.

"That was a bust," Xavier said. They were now driving back to the Boarding House themselves. "I was really looking forward to kicking Katherine's ass."

"So was I," Sera replied. "But, you know what they say. You can't always get what you want."

Xavier laughed as they turned into the Boarding House's driveway. Sera parked her black jeep just behind Damon's car and the two of them got out. "So, now what?" Xavier asked. "You going to do a locator spell to find her?"

"Who? Katherine?"

"Yeah."

"I don't really care where Katherine is as long as she is not bothering us," Sera replied. "I certainly don't want her to come back here."

"Fair point," Xavier said. They started walking to the house themselves. "But, at the same time, do we really want the threat of her return?"

"Hopefully, with any luck, Klaus will find her and finish the job for us."

Xavier gave his cousin a strange look as they walked into the Boarding House. They were immediately greeted by Stefan.

"Sera, can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure, what's up?"

Stefan motioned behind him to the stairs. "In private, please."

Sera and Xavier glanced at each other before Sera followed Stefan to the second floor. Once they were in her bedroom, Stefan closed the door behind him.

"Whatever it is, I didn't do it," Sera said.

"You honestly think I brought you up here to yell at you?"

"It's the only thing I can think of," Sera replied, with a shrug.

"I came up here to ask you for a favor."

"What is it?"

Stefan stared at her for a moment, almost like he was thinking about whether or not he should continue. "I need you give Elena the Boarding House."

Sera stared at him, not believing what she just heard him say. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You heard me."

"You expect me to sign over the Boarding House to Elena?"

"It's for her protection," Stefan started to explain.

"It's my house!" Sera interrupted. "Zach promised me the house if he were to die with no other family. This house belongs to me now. I'm not signing it over to your girlfriend."

"If the house is in Elena's name, no other vampire can get in without an invitation," Stefan replied. "Including Klaus."

"I know how it works." Sera crossed her arms. "She can go somewhere else where Klaus hasn't gained entry. What about her lake house? Can't she go back there?"

Stefan's eyes narrowed. "What is wrong with you?" he asked. "We're talking about Elena's safety and you're giving me a hissy fit about who the Boarding House belongs to?" Sera shot her father a glare, but didn't respond. Stefan put his hands on his hips. "I want an answer."

Sera looked down at the ground. "This is my home," she said. "The first place that has truly felt like a home since Mom died. I am not going to give it up."

Stefan's expression softened. "It's only temporary," he said. "Just until we deal with Klaus and then the house will be yours again. I give you my word."

Sera was quiet for a few moments. "Fine," she finally said, looking at her father. "But, she better freaking invite me in."

* * *

"Seriously? You're giving Elena the house?"

Sera sighed. "Dad promised me that it wouldn't be forever," she said. "Just until this whole mess is over and Elena is safe."

"Damn, I'm surprised," Xavier said. "I never thought you'd give this place up once you had your hands on it."

"I'm not," Sera replied. "It's on loan."

"You're doing the right thing, Sera," Damon said, meeting up with his son and niece in the hallway with the deed to the house. "Think about it this way. This will protect us from Klaus and his minions too."

"Yeah, yeah," Sera said. "Let's just get this over with before I change my mind."

The three of them headed to the living room, where Stefan was already talking to Elena.

"He knows I'm not going to run."**

"Which is why we need to take some precautions,"** Damon said, as he, Xavier, and Sera entered the room. He put the paperwork in Elena's lap. "Cause we got played. All of us."**

Sera crossed her arms as Elena looked down at the paperwork. "What's this?"**

"It's the deed to our house,"** Stefan replied. "It's in Sera's name. Zach promised Sera that she would get the house upon his death. When he died, I made sure that ownership transferred over to her. But, when you sign the paperwork, it'll be yours."

Elena looked at Sera. "You're giving me your house?"**

"It's a loan," Sera clarified. "I expect to get it back when all this is said and done."

"Isobel had the right idea with the safe house,"** Stefan interjected. "You'll just stay here until it's all over. That way you can control who gets invited in and who doesn't."**

"Although, I will be super pissed if you lock me out,"** Damon said.

Just then, John woke up from where Damon and Xavier had left him on the floor. "Jesus, I forgot he was there," Xavier said.

Damon rushed at John, grabbing him by his collar and lifting him off the ground. He looked ready to kill as John started apologizing. Elena told Damon to let John go so that she could talk to him and Xavier and Sera took that as their cue to head back upstairs. Elena stopped Sera from going with a hand on her arm.

"Thank you," Elena said, simply. "I know this must have been hard for you."

Sera glanced at Stefan and then looked back at Elena. "You're welcome," Sera said, genuinely. "But, I meant what I said. It's isn't forever. I expect to get this house back soon enough."

They both smiled and Sera continued her trek up to her room as Elena went to talk to John and Stefan and Damon headed to the library. Xavier was waiting for her in her room, laying on her bed and pretending to read one of her magazines.

"Trying figure out the top ten best ways to get a guy to notice you?"

Xavier gave her a look as he closed the magazine. "I really don't know why you read this stuff," he said.

"I don't, but I have to at least pretend to be a normal girl, should anyone from school happen to come here that doesn't know our secret," Sera said. "Besides, it has some good book recommendations on page 27."

Xavier put the magazine back where he found it. "We have an entire library downstairs. Have you seriously not found something to read from down there?"

"Nothing that I'm interested in at the moment."

"You just want an excuse to buy more books."

"Perhaps."

"There's this new invention, you know," Xavier said, sitting up. "It's called the internet. You can go and browse bookstores from the comfort of your own –"

He was cut off with a pillow to the face and, when he pulled it away, both he and Sera were laughing.

"Shut up," Sera said. "Now, get out. I want to get some grimoire research done tonight and I don't need you bothering me."

Xavier sighed. "Fine," he said. "I didn't want to hang out with you either."

Sera rolled her eyes and shook her head with a smile on her face as he got up and left the room.

* * *

 **I hope that you like this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	9. A Violent Reunion

The paperwork had been signed in the morning and the Boarding House officially belonged to Elena. Now, Sera was sitting in history class with Stefan, Bonnie, and Elena. Sera's seat was in between Stefan and Elena and Bonnie was to Elena's left. As the other students took their seats, Elena nudged Sera's shoulder and held up a poster for the 60s Dance that night. Sera smiled and nodded and Elena motioned for her to get Stefan's attention. When presented with the same question, Stefan gave Elena and Sera a look and shook his head. Sera leaned over to her father as Elena turned to ask Bonnie.

"Come on, we both know you're going to end up going."

Stefan sighed. "Doesn't mean I can't try and get out of it."

Sera was smiling as Alaric walked into the classroom. "Hello, class,"** he said. "What are we learning today?"**

One of the students up at the front reminded Alaric that they were learning about the 60s, given the fact that the dance was coming up. Alaric started to turn to write on the chalkboard but then he froze. Sera looked to where he was looking and saw him staring at Elena. It wasn't for a long time, but Sera thought it strange all the same.

Alaric began his lesson, but Sera wasn't paying much attention. After all, she was only going to school to have friends, not for the education it provided. She bent over, after accidentally knocking her pen onto the floor, and when she straightened in her seat, she saw Alaric staring right at her. Again, it wasn't for a long period of time, but the look on Alaric's face this time showed shock. Almost as if he wasn't expecting Sera to be there.

* * *

School had taken quite an interesting turn when Klaus compelled a student to ask Elena for the Last Dance on his behalf.

Back at the Boarding House, there was a small battle-planning session in which it was determined that Bonnie and Sera would have no problem taking Klaus down, especially now that Bonnie had the power of the dead witches. Now, Sera was going through her closet, trying to find an appropriate dress for the dance that night.

"It's not easy trying to find an outfit that is historically appropriate and can also be good for fighting a thousand year old vampire," Sera said.

"I don't think the people at the dance really care about historical accuracy," Xavier said.

Sera poked her head out of her closet to look at her cousin. "I do."

Xavier laughed and shook his head. "It's easy for me. I get to wear a suit and a tie."

"I'm going to have to go with my psychedelic dress, even though I hate it."

"How could you hate it? You loved that dress!"

"Yeah, maybe fifty years ago," Sera said. "Not anymore."

"It's only for one night," Xavier reminded her. "Do you even still have your boots?"

"Unfortunately, I have everything. Though, the boots aren't completely horrible," Sera said, stepping out of her closet with everything she needed to look genuinely from the 60s. "I'm too sentimental for my own good."

"Or, you were secretly planning for future Halloween costumes."

Sera laughed. "Yeah, ok," she said. "Now, get out. I have to change."

* * *

About an hour later, the gym at the high school was packed with people. The music was blasting, people were dancing, and Sera, Xavier, and the others were all scanning the crowd for Klaus. Klaus had already dedicated a song to Elena and the dance had barely begun. Now, their little group was trying to blend in while also searching for any sign of their enemy.

"Something's wrong," Sera said, as she danced alongside her cousin. "Dad and Uncle Damon are in one corner and Elena just pulled Bonnie off the dance floor."

"There's always something wrong," Xavier said. "Haven't you figured that out by now?"

"I'm being serious," Sera said. She nodded towards Stefan and Damon. "Look, here they come."

Stefan and Damon walked up to their children. "What is it?" Xavier asked.

"It's Bonnie," Stefan explained. "If she uses her power against Klaus, it will kill her." He looked at his daughter. "Sera, I hate to have to say this, but you're going to have to take Klaus on yourself. Can you handle it?"

Sera nodded. "No problem," she said. "Where are Elena and Bonnie? I should talk to them."

"Probably outside," Damon said.

Sera nodded. "Thanks."

Sera headed off the dance floor, leaving the Salvatore Men behind. She found Bonnie and Elena in the parking lot and walked up to them. "No one is dying here tonight except for Klaus," she said. Elena and Bonnie turned to her. "I'll take care of him, Bonnie. You don't have to put yourself at risk like this."

"Perfect solution," Elena said, looking from Sera to Bonnie. "Let Sera handle this one, Bonnie. Please. I can't lose you."

Bonnie seemed hesitant. "Fine," she said. She looked at Sera. "But, I will be nearby, just in case."

Sera nodded. "Thanks."

Just then, Alaric rushed up to them, telling them that Klaus had Jeremy. The three of them followed Alaric back into the school and through the halls.

"Where are you taking us?"** Elena asked.

"Just a little further,"** Alaric replied.

"Wait,"** Elena said, looking behind them. "Something's not right."**

"Where's Jeremy?"** Bonnie demanded.

The three of them stopped when they heard Alaric start to laugh. "I just had to get away from that dance,"** Alaric said, turning around and looking at the three girls. "The 60s, ugh! Not my decade. I mean, who's call was that anyway? I much prefer the 20s. The style, the parties, the jazz."**

Sera stiffened as Elena and Bonnie looked at each other and then back at Alaric. There was only one person that she knew who loved the 20s that much. "Klaus," she said, calmly.

Klaus smiled. "Surprise!" He said.

Elena started shaking her head. "It's not possible."**

Bonnie stepped in front of Elena, ready to protect her. "Just relax, Elena,"** Klaus said. "I'm not here to hurt you. You're not on my hit list tonight."** He looked at Bonnie. "But, you are."**

Klaus lunged for Bonnie, but she used her magic to send him flying into a set of lockers. Sera stepped in front of both Bonnie and Elena. "Both of you run!" Sera said. "Now!"

"But, Sera…"

"I said now, Elena!" Sera snapped. "Go!"

Bonnie pushed Elena along and they both started running. Sera turned back to the man struggling to stand as she heard Bonnie use her magic to slam the doors shut behind her. Klaus started laughing.

"It's been a long time, Love," Klaus said.

"Not long enough," Sera replied.

"Katerina told me that Stefan Salvatore had a hybrid daughter," Klaus replied. "Actually, it was more like she warned me. She warned me about you and your magic, as if I didn't already know. She warned me about the Bennett witch too, obviously, hence why I am here to kill her. I pretended like I didn't know you, of course. I know of that precious secret of yours and Elijah's. Though, seeing you in class earlier, that did still surprise me. But, Love, you have to know that your secret is bound to be revealed now."

"Why?" Sera demanded. "Because you're finally here?"

Klaus nodded. "And, I don't plan on going away." He replied. "I never wanted to keep the secret, you know. Never really understood why it had to be a secret, honestly."

Sera's eyes went from brown to blood red. She waved her hand as if shooing a fly away and Klaus slammed into some lockers. "It was because of you," she replied, as Klaus brought himself into a kneeling position.

Klaus was breathing through the pain coursing through Alaric's body. "Things weren't always like this between you and I, Serafina. Celia turned you against me."

Sera rolled her eyes. "No, she didn't," she replied. "You're the one who messed everything up."

"Why must everyone blame me for everything?"

Sera pretended to think for a moment. "Because it's usually your fault."

Klaus laughed as he finally managed to bring himself into a standing position. "At least let this be a fair fight."

Klaus rushed at Sera and pinned her against the doors that Bonnie had closed. Sera winced as her head slammed into the glass. "Since when has anything been fair with you?"

She used her magic to throw Klaus off of her. He slammed into another set of lockers and Sera allowed him to stand. He smiled at her before the lights shut off and Sera was left in complete darkness. When the lights came back on mere moments later, Klaus was gone. Sera headed down the hallway cautiously, wondering what room or hallway Klaus was going to pop out of. She eventually found him in the cafeteria, casually sitting at one of the tables.

"That was a neat little trick you pulled," Sera said, calmly walking towards him. "How did you manage that?"

"You should know more than anyone never to ask a magician for his secrets."

"You're not a magician."

Klaus smirked. "No," he said. "I most certainly am not." He was suddenly out of his chair, rushing at Sera. Before she had a chance to react, his hand was grasping her throat and he was pinning her against one of the vending machines. "But, I am very old and very powerful in my own right," he continued.

Sera gasped as she felt something embed itself into her stomach. Klaus was staring into her eyes as he released his grip on her neck and she slid to the floor. She grabbed onto the wooden stake now sticking out of her. Klaus smiled down at her. "I had a feeling that this might come in handy," he said, as Sera groaned in pain. "I didn't think I'd be using it on you though." He squatted down next to her. "I soaked it in vervain myself," he said. "One of the perks in being in Alaric's body. The vervain didn't harm me in the least."

Sera opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out because of the pain. Silent tears fell down her face. Klaus looked up when he heard footsteps coming and watched as Bonnie walked into the cafeteria.

"What took you so long?"** Klaus asked Bonnie. He stood. "Now, do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?"** Bonnie used her magic and broke Alaric's hand. Klaus cried out in pain as he put Alaric's bones back into place and smiled at her. "The hard way. Got it."**

"Bonnie…no!" Sera said, from her spot on the floor. Her voice showed how much pain she was in. "Don't do this!"

Bonnie looked at her friend. "I told you that I would be here. Just in case."

Sera closed her eyes as she tried to grab onto the stake, but the vervain burned her hands. Klaus laughed. "How sweet."

Bonnie used her magic again to break more of Alaric's bones. The more she used her magic, the more things started happening. The lights began to flicker, a wind began to blow. The more Klaus tried to stand and fight, the more bones Bonnie broke with her magic. Sera cried out in pain as she tried, again, to pull the stake out, to no avail. She looked up when she heard Elena yell to Bonnie and saw Bonnie use her magic to close and lock the doors to the cafeteria before Elena and Stefan could get inside.

Sera started to drag herself across the floor, trying as hard as she could to get to Klaus and help Bonnie. Stefan spotted his injured daughter. "Sera!"

She heard pounding on the door and knew that Stefan was trying to break it down. Everything around them started to blow, sending sparks of electricity raining down upon them. Bonnie's nose was bleeding as she looked back at Elena and Stefan. Klaus finally managed to stand once more as Bonnie turned, looked at him, and then collapsed to the ground.

Everything went dark and Klaus disappeared. The doors to the cafeteria unlocked and Elena and Stefan raced inside, Elena to Bonnie and Stefan to Sera. Stefan moved to pull the stake out of his daughter's stomach, but she stopped him.

"Vervain," she managed to say, through the pain. "Klaus doused it in vervain."

"I think I can handle it." Stefan grabbed onto it anyway and yanked the stake out of Sera's stomach, crying out a bit in pain as he did so. Sera did the same and then felt herself being picked up by Stefan. Cradling his daughter in his arms, Stefan carefully made his way back over to Elena, who was crying over Bonnie's body.

That was the last thing that Sera remembered before she fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

When Sera woke up, she found herself back in her room at the Boarding House. Stefan was sitting at her desk, ready and waiting with multiple bags of blood.

"Hey," he said, softly, as he handed her a bag. "Drink. You definitely need it."

Sera obeyed without protest and took a few gulps. "What happened?"

"Short version: Bonnie is ok," Stefan said. "Apparently, she cast some sort of spell to make it look like she died so that Klaus will think that she is out of the picture. Your uncle thinks that's how we will win."

"But, what about me?" Sera asked. "Klaus knows about me. How will Bonnie faking her death help?"

Stefan pulled back the blankets and inspected his daughter's wound, which was already beginning to heal. "Because you should never let your enemy know about all of the cards you have in your deck," Stefan replied. "Or, at least that's what your uncle said when I asked him the same question."

Sera laughed. "That is something that he would say," she said. "But, I'm not sure how I like being considered a card in his deck."

"Now, you know he doesn't view you like that," Stefan said. "But, I can see where his logic comes from. Even though, a part of me wants to hide you away too."

"But, you know that I won't stay hidden."

Stefan smiled. "Exactly." He stood and kissed his daughter's forehead, then turned to leave. "Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning. You'll be healed by then."

"Dad?"

Stefan turned back to look at her. "Yeah?"

"Stay with me for a bit?" She asked. "Please?"

Stefan smiled. "Of course," he said. He joined his daughter on her bed. "What do you want to watch?"

Sera smiled. "How did you know?"

Stefan shrugged. "I'd like to think that after a century I would know how my own daughter's mind operates," he replied. "I'm thinking a movie."

"A mystery," Sera said. "A murder mystery."

"You got it," Stefan said. He grabbed the remote from Sera's bedside table and turned on the TV that she had in her room. Sera rested her head on Stefan's shoulder as she continued to drink from the blood bags.

They both knew that they had to take these moments when they could, because one never knew what tomorrow might bring.

* * *

 **The next chapter is shaping up to be a long one! And, we will finally know how Sera knows the Originals! Yay!**

 **I hope that you enjoyed this chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	10. Not a Secret Anymore

Sera had her headphones in and was humming along to a song as she walked from her room to the first floor of the Boarding House. She looked up when she heard voices and stopped short when she saw Elijah standing outside of the Boarding House, holding the Original dagger, and Elena standing inside. The two appeared to be talking. She pulled the headphones out of her ears.

"Elijah?"

Elena turned and Elijah looked over Elena's shoulder to see Sera standing behind her. "Ah! Serafina," he said. "I take it this house no longer belongs to your family?"

"Temporarily," Sera replied. "I intend to get it back."

"Wait, hang on," Elena said. "You two know each other?"

Elijah looked at Elena. "Has Serafina not told you yet?" Elena shook her head. Elijah sighed. "Serafina, you might as well start telling people," he said. "There's no point in keeping it a secret any longer."

"Keep what a secret?" Elena said. "Sera, what is he talking about?"

"How about we not talk too loudly?" Sera suggested, pointing upstairs. "Let's go outside, shall we?" Sera looked over her shoulder as she ushered Elena outside where Elijah was standing and closed the door behind her. "There," she said. "Much better."

"Sera, what is going on?" Elena asked. "How do you two know each other?"

Sera took in a deep breath. "My mother's name was Celia Mikaelson."

Elijah looked at Sera as he spoke. "Elena, allow me to formally introduce you to my granddaughter."

* * *

"You're Elijah's granddaughter?" Elena said. "And Stefan doesn't know?"

They were now in Elena's car. Elena was driving, Elijah was sitting shotgun and drinking from a blood bag, and Sera was in the backseat. Sera wasn't entirely sure where they were going, but she was glad that they were nowhere near the Boarding House for the conversation that they were about to have. Honestly, she would have rather told Stefan first, above anyone else, but circumstances said differently. Elena, though she took the news fairly well, was more angry than anything else. But, Sera had expected this to be a reaction from at least some of her new-found friends, so she was prepared.

Sera shook her head. "Not yet," she admitted.

"How can he not know?" Elena demanded. "He's your father!"

"Because my mom and Elijah wanted it to be kept a secret," Sera replied.

"As you might imagine, Elena, my family has amassed many enemies over the course of our lives," Elijah said. "We did not want Serafina to have to pay for anything my family or I have done simply because she has our blood in her veins. So, for her protection, we kept this fact a secret."

"But, even from her own father?" Elena said. "He is the one person who should have been told! How could he not have known who he was involved with? Or, the family his daughter belonged to?"

"Like I said," Sera replied. "My mother was extremely good at keeping secrets."

Elijah glanced at Sera before looking back at Elena. "My daughter, Celia, and I meant for it to be kept a secret from everyone, even Stefan," Elijah said.

"This is wrong," Elena said. "Stefan deserves to know. Your whole family deserves to know. This should not have been kept from them."

"I understand that," Sera said. "And, they will know now that it has become public knowledge. I will tell them myself. I will announce it to the world if that's what people want. It was not a secret I wanted to keep, but one that I kept because it was my mother's dying wish that I continue to do so. You don't understand what it's like to be a part of this family, Elena. It can be absolutely amazing one moment and then it can absolutely suck the next. We're not what you say is normal, even for a family of supernatural beings." She looked at her grandfather. "No offence, of course."

Elijah shrugged. "It's the truth."

Sera looked back at Elena. "I promise you, I will tell them," she said. "Today. That way, you won't have to keep the secret for too long."

Elena sighed as she pulled over and stopped the car. "Fine," she said. She turned to Elijah. "You look better."**

"Serafina, did you give them the dagger?" Elijah asked, ignoring Elena's comment.

"Of course not," Sera replied. "I didn't even tell them I knew anything about it. I played dumb."

"Yet, you allowed me to stay daggered in your basement?"

"It was all a part of the ruse," Sera said. "I had to go along with it. You don't think I would let them do anything to you, do you?"

"My clothes suggest otherwise."

"Alright, enough," Elena said. "I will tell you everything. But, we have to work together, Elijah. I need your word."**

"Your ability to make demands is long past,"** Elijah said. "And, don't get any ideas that you are exempted from that, Serafina."

"Why? Because I let them burn your suit?" Sera said. "In my defense, I had no idea they were going to do that."

"No demands,"** Elena agreed. "I'm offering my help. And, in return, I want yours."**

"And, why should I even consider this?"**

"The same reason that you haven't killed me,"** Elena said. "You need my help to kill Klaus. And, I need you."**

Elena's phone started buzzing and Sera automatically knew that it was Stefan, and not just because Elena hesitated before answering. They both sat in silence as Elena and Stefan talked.

"Elijah is a noble man, Stefan,"** Elena was saying. "He lives by a code of honor. I can trust him. He knows I'd be incredibly stupid to betray him again. By removing the dagger, I have proven myself."** There was a pause. "I'm not alone," Elena said, shifting her position to look at Sera. "Sera's here." Sera winced and she heard her father demand to know why she was with them. She motioned for Elena to give her the phone. "Hang on, Stefan," she said. "Here she is."

Sera took the phone and put it to her ear. Before she even said anything, Stefan was talking. _"Sera, make Elena come home,"_ he said. _"Neither one of you should be alone with Elijah."_

"Dad, everything Elena said about Elijah is true," Sera said, looking at the Original. "Besides, he won't do anything while I'm here."

 _"Just because you have magic?"_

"No," Sera said. Her eyes locked with Elijah's. "Just because he's my grandfather." There it was. Out in the open. Stefan finally knew her mother's closely guarded secret. This was definitely not how Sera wanted to tell him, she would have much rather had this conversation face to face, but at least she told him. The lack of response from the other end of the phone caused Sera's heart to pick up its pace. "Dad?"

 _"We'll talk when you get home."_

"Dad, I swear, this wasn't how I wanted to tell you…"

 _"I said we'll talk when you get home."_

Sera sighed as she handed Elena the phone. She looked at Elijah, who was almost smiling at her. "What?"

"Nothing," he said. "It was just nice to hear you call me that again."

Sera smirked as Elijah asked for Elena's phone and put it in his coat pocket. But, the smirk didn't last for long as she thought about what awaited her when she finally returned to the Boarding House.

* * *

They were now at the Lockwood mansion. Elijah compelled Carol Lockwood to give him one of her dead husband's suits and, after he changed, they decided to hang out there while Carol went to a meeting. Sera felt slightly strange hanging out in a house that didn't belong to any of them, but at least they had privacy.

Sera sat in silence as Elijah and Elena talked, catching each other up on the past and on recent events, respectively. Elena looked at Sera when Elijah confirmed that Klaus was his brother, but Sera just continued to listen, laughing out loud when she heard her grandfather use the phrase "OMG!" for the first time.

She listened as Elijah told Elena about their family, how they were the oldest vampires in the world and how all the vampires in the world came from them. There was a sense of pride that came with being a Mikaelson, Sera had discovered over the years, but that was constantly overshadowed with trying to hide that she even knew them because of all that they had done. She followed Elijah and Elena outside when Elijah determined that he needed some air. As they walked outside, Sera's phone started ringing.

 _"You are in so much trouble."_

Sera's eyes closed when she heard her cousin's voice. "I figured that out, thanks."

 _"I haven't seen Uncle Stefan this angry in a long time. I can't believe that you kept something this big from me!"_

"You figured it out for yourself."

 _"Yeah, but we never keep secrets from each other."_

"It wasn't just my secret to keep," Sera explained. "It was also Elijah's and my mom's."

 _"Oh, I get that you were keeping it for Celia. But, seriously, Sera? You could have told Uncle Stefan, at least. He certainly wouldn't have told anyone."_

"And, you would?"

 _"No, but I'm just saying, we're your family too. We wouldn't have said anything."_

Sera sighed. "I know."

 _"I don't understand how you managed to keep this a secret from me, actually. I mean, Celia was practically my mom. How did I not know about this sooner?"_

"Because they timed their visits for when you weren't around," Sera said. "Whenever you were away visiting your friends or were at school or were with Uncle Damon, they would come to see us."

 _"What about when we were kids? What if you didn't know that they were coming?"_

Sera hesitated. "The Originals can compel anyone they want."

 _"Are you kidding me? I've been compelled this whole time?"_

"Yup," Sera replied. "Mom hated it with a passion, but she felt it was best for your protection. Ignorance is bliss, or so they say."

 _"That's messed up, Sera."_

"It wasn't my idea!" Sera defended herself. "I can't control what my family does."

 _"Clearly."_

"Look, I've got to go. Elijah's getting Elena up to speed on my family's history and such…"

 _"Damn, Sera. I don't know if I should be giving you my sympathy for being a member of the Original Family or be slightly jealous that you come from such power."_

"Goodbye, Xavier." Sera slipped her phone back into her pocket and caught up with Elijah and Elena. "What's going on?"

"I need to go," Elena said. "Klaus went after Jenna. But, I'll be back. I promise."

"Wonderful," Sera said. "Gives me time to re-bond with my dear old grandpa."

Elijah started to smile at his granddaughter as Elena rushed back to her car. "You're not going to run home and try to patch things up with your father?"

"I'd like to avoid conflict as much as possible," Sera replied. "Besides, something tells me he already has his hands full today."

"I know that wasn't how you wanted to tell him," Elijah said. "But, I am glad that it is finally out in the open."

"Why? Do you want me to wear the name loud and proud?"

"Not necessarily," Elijah replied. "But, no one should have to hide who they are and where they come from, especially from those they love."

"I guess a weight has been lifted off my shoulders," Sera said, as they continued to walk around the yard. "But, I do feel as though I should warn you that Klaus knows that I am in town."

"How?"

"I may or may not have fought him at the school dance the other night."

"Serafina!"

"I couldn't help it, he's been threatening all of us," Sera said. "I needed to do something to help."

"Now, he'll be seeking you out to help him," Elijah said. "You won't be safe."

"Well, once he returns to his own body, neither will he."

Elijah sighed. "I suppose we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," he said. "Now, you and I have come catching up to do."

* * *

When Elena eventually returned, Elijah continued their conversation where they left off, telling Elena more about the Original family and Klaus's curse. When the conversation turned onto Klaus being a hybrid and how powerful Klaus truly was, then Sera, too, became a topic of conversation.

"Klaus took a particular interest in Serafina when she, too, became a hybrid," Elijah was saying. "Klaus had always wanted to break the curse that the witches had placed upon him and assumed that Serafina, being an impossible hybrid herself, might be the key to doing so."

"Needless to say," Sera cut in. "Things got bad between me and Klaus very quickly."

"What happened?" Elena asked.

Elijah looked at his granddaughter and then back at Elena. "My brother wanted Serafina to help him break his curse."

Elena looked at Sera. "So, you knew what Klaus wanted all along?"

"Not exactly," Elijah said, before Sera had a chance to respond.

Elena became confused. "I don't understand."

"Back in the day, Klaus wanted my help with something. Only, he never told me what he wanted. He just kept asking me odd questions. He wanted to know what the limits to my power were and things like that. He even had me show him some of what I could do, difficult things that not every witch can pull off. It was like he was testing me, which was confusing because Klaus knew me since the day I was born. He already knew what I could do and what I was capable of. I told my mother about what Klaus was asking and she intervened, stopping him from pestering me. He then tried to get her to help him, but she refused," Sera explained. "I didn't know what he wanted back then, but I do now. The pieces clicked together for me the night we got the information from Luka. Klaus was trying to use my youthful ignorance to his advantage, because I certainly wouldn't have helped him if I knew what he wanted."

"Eventually," Elijah said. "My brother began to see Serafina and Celia as a threat."

"Why?" Elena asked. "Why all of a sudden?"

Elijah explained to Elena the problem regarding killing Klaus, given the fact that he was a hybrid. "A witch with enough power can kill Klaus,"** Elijah said. "So, Klaus eventually came to believe that Serafina would be the key to his downfall, not his relief."

"So, Klaus has been trying to kill you too?" Elena said. "And, you knew this going into the battle you had with him the other night?"

"He hasn't exactly been trying to kill me," Sera said. "He and I were once as thick as thieves, much to Elijah and my mom's chagrin, before he tried to use me. It's more like…it's more like he wants to chain me up somewhere and throw away the key. Klaus has a very strange view on family."

The conversation shifted back to Elena and Elijah talking about how both Sera and Bonnie had enough power to kill Klaus. Elijah told Elena that he had a solution to the doppelgänger problem, which was news to Sera, and then about how Elijah had once had a thing for Katherine, which wasn't entirely news to Sera but she had forgotten that little tidbit of information. Eventually, they left the Lockwood mansion and headed back to the Boarding House. When they arrived, they found Xavier breaking up a fight between Stefan and Damon.

"Both of you need to calm down!" Xavier was yelling, standing in between his father and uncle. "Right now!"

"What is going on here?"** Elena demanded.

"Now you've invited him in?"** Damon said, motioning to Elijah and ignoring Elena's question.

"Elijah and I have renewed the terms of our deal,"** Elena explained.

"Well, I guess that makes some sort of sense given the fact that Elijah is apparently a relation of ours now," Damon said, looking at his brother. Stefan glared at him as Sera rolled her eyes. "Too soon?"

"None of you will come to any harm at my hands," Elijah assured them. "I only ask for one thing in return."**

"What?"** Damon asked.

"An apology,"** Elijah said.

"A what?"**

Stefan and Damon looked at each other before Stefan walked up to Elijah. "I'm sorry for the part I played in your death,"** Stefan said. "I was protecting Elena** and my daughter. I will always protect Elena** and my daughter."

"I understand."**

Stefan was quiet for a moment. "And, now, I want an apology from you."

Elijah arched an eyebrow as Sera stiffened. "For what?"

"For forcing Sera to keep the fact that she is related to you a secret from me and the rest of our family," Stefan said. "For forcing my daughter to lie to me."

Elijah stared at him for a moment. "I am sorry for the part I played in Sera's deception," he said. "She should never have been made to keep something of this magnitude from you." He looked at Damon and Xavier. "Any of you."

Stefan nodded and locked gazes with his daughter briefly before everyone looked at Damon and waited for his apology, which did not come, even with some prompting from Elena about how they found a solution that didn't involve her death. Eventually, the group split up and all went their separate ways. Sera tried to sneak off to her room, but Stefan stopped her.

"Serafina Gabrielle Salvatore, you stay exactly where you are!"

Sera closed her eyes when she heard her father say her name and stopped and turned around. "I know what you're thinking," Sera began. "And, I understand you being angry with me."

"Angry?!" Stefan said. "No, that doesn't even begin to cover what I'm feeling right now. How could you keep this from me, Sera? How could you not tell me that you are Elijah's granddaughter?!"

"Mom made me promise not to tell anyone of my heritage," Sera said, weakly. "She wanted to protect me from the Mikaelsons' enemies. My name is Salvatore. No one would ever guess that I had any connection to them."

"How is this possible?" Stefan asked. "How could your mother have been Elijah's daughter? She was a witch - a mortal - not a vampire. And, vampires can't have children."

"Mom was born when Elijah was still human," Sera began to explain. "Before he and his siblings became vampires. She used magic to keep herself young and alive for centuries. She only stopped doing that when she met you and had me."

"Why would she stop?"

"Because she loved you and could see a future with you," Sera admitted. Stefan swallowed, remembering how he had once wanted a future with Celia, and looked to the ground as he continued to listen. "But, then you turned, so she knew a future with you would be full of heartbreak and pain. After all, you were immortal and she wasn't. So, she continued to allow herself to age for my sake. So that she and I could at least appear normal to the general public, no matter our ties to the supernatural."

Stefan looked back up at his daughter. "Why didn't she ask to become a vampire after you did?"

"She didn't want to lose her magic," Sera replied. "Even though I didn't lose mine when I turned, Mom didn't want to take the chance. She never understood what happened to allow me to keep my magic, but she had a feeling that such an event wouldn't be able to be repeated."

"I'm sure that you tried to convince her otherwise."

"Of course I did," Sera replied. "I think that I almost had her changing her mind when she got sick. Then, she decided to let Nature take its course with her."

"And the Originals?" Stefan said. "What did they say to her not wanting to turn?"

"What do you think?"

Stefan nodded, knowing that none of the Originals would have probably taken the idea of Celia dying very well. He was quiet for a few moments, before breaking the awkward silence. "I'm your father, Sera," Stefan said. "I have a right to know about something like this. I have a right to know who the hell my daughter is."

Sera hung her head. "I know."

Stefan stared at her for a moment. "Did you know all along how we could kill an Original?"

"Yes."

"Did you know that we had to keep the dagger in Elijah's chest to keep him dead?"

"Yes."

Stefan shrugged. "So, because of your little secret, you put all of us at risk."

Sera looked up at her father. "No!" She exclaimed. "I would never have let anything happen to any of you. Isn't what I did at the 60s Dance evidence enough for that?"

"They're your family, Sera," Stefan said. "How can we be sure that you won't stop us from doing what is necessary?"

"Because I haven't yet, though I have had ample opportunity to," Sera said. "You're my father. You take precedence over my insane great-uncle."

"You're certain?"

Sera sighed. "They're my family, Dad," she said. "There is a part of me that does love them and always will. I have some great memories involving them, even involving Klaus. But, that doesn't mean that I won't stop them from hurting others that I love. We Mikaelsons have a very strange dynamic with each other."

Stefan looked down again, not too sure how much he liked his daughter referring to herself as a Mikaelson, as he crossed his arms. "Are there any other major secrets that you have kept from me?"

Sera shook her head. "None that are mine to tell," she said. "Though, I think that the fact that I am a Mikaelson is why I am a hybrid, but that's just a suspicion on my part."

Stefan nodded and looked up at her once more. "I want the truth from now on, Sera," he said. "No more secrets of this magnitude."

"Yes, Dad," Sera replied.

Stefan uncrossed his arms and walked past his daughter. "Good night."

Sera closed her eyes for a moment as she listened to Stefan's footsteps fade away. She turned and headed up to the second floor and found her uncle standing just outside his bedroom door. He didn't exactly look like he had calmed down from what happened downstairs, but he did look like he was waiting for her. "You here to yell at me too?"

"I think that Stefan did that enough for all of us," Damon said. "I get that you were keeping the secret for Celia, but you could have told us, Sera. You should have told us."

"I know."

Damon took his niece into his embrace. "Stefan won't be mad for long," he assured her. "Give him a day or two to calm down. Everything will be fine between you two, I promise."

Sera nodded against her uncle's shoulder. "And, you and me?"

Damon pulled away from his niece. "We're totally fine," he said. "Who knows? Your connection to the Originals might be able to help us in the future. Like in the days of old, when marriages were made and children were born to unite countries."

Sera couldn't help but laugh. "I'm glad that I can be your walking, talking alliance."

Damon smiled and turned to head back into his bedroom. "Good night," he said. "See you in the morning."

Sera continued on to her bedroom and found her cousin waiting for her there. "How much do you hate me?"

"Hate is a strong word," Xavier said. "I'll admit that I'm not happy, but I certainly don't hate you. No permanent damage."

"I'm sorry that I never told you."

Xavier shrugged. "I get why you didn't," he said. "I wouldn't want to admit to that either." Sera laughed when she saw the smile break out on Xavier's face. "Come on," he continued. "You can tell me all about your family's illustrious history."

"No, I won't," Sera said, returning the smile. "My family's skeletons are staying in their closets unless it's absolutely necessary to reveal them."

Xavier shrugged his shoulders. "It was worth a try."

* * *

 **And, there we have it! Sera's secret is now public knowledge!**

 **I hope that you like this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	11. A Choice to be Made

Telling everyone else about Sera's family connections had been relatively easy. Xavier told Jeremy, who passed the message along to Bonnie, and Sera told Caroline. Anyone who they might have forgotten or who would need to know would find out eventually. For the first time in her entire life, Sera could openly admit to being related to the Originals and she was going to take full advantage of this ability now that she had it.

Within reason, of course.

Stefan was still not really speaking to Sera, but Sera just kept telling herself that, eventually, they would be on good terms again. She couldn't fault Stefan for being mad, but she still hoped that he would overcome his anger sooner rather than later. She hated being on the outs with him and she didn't like the feeling that came with it.

They had gathered in the Boarding House. Elijah got Stefan, Damon and Xavier up to speed on the conversation that he had had with Sera and Elena. He explained how the ritual would proceed, how Klaus needed to drink Elena's blood to the point of her death, and then how Elijah would revive Elena with some elixir that he had acquired 500-some-odd years ago. Damon was having none of that, however, and was getting quite annoyed by the idea of what was going to happen if Elijah's elixir didn't work.

Xavier went after Damon when he left the room in anger and followed him outside to the backyard. "Dad, could you at least try and be a team player for once?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Damon asked, not turning around.

"It means that, instead of being your usual self, you could at least try and be supportive."

Damon looked at his son. "Supportive?" he said. "Why on earth would I support this insane plan? Why am I the only one who seems to care that this plan involves Elena dying?"

"That's not true and you know it," Xavier said. "Uncle Stefan probably cares the most out of everyone in that room, but it's Elena's decision. If she wants to go through with it, who are we to stop her?"

"Sometimes, when your friends are about to do something stupid, you have to intervene for their benefit," Damon replied. "Have I taught you nothing?"

Xavier rolled his eyes. "Your solution is just as risky," he replied. "Say we stop Elena from doing the ritual. Ok, fine, Elena is alive, but for how long? She will still be hunted by Klaus. We all will still be hunted by Klaus. The only way I can see this going well is if we allow Elena to do what she feels she needs to do."

Damon looked back at their backyard. "Talk to your cousin," he said. "Perhaps she will have some sway with our hybrid friend."

"You seriously think that, after the dance, Sera would have the power to get Klaus to back down?"

Damon shrugged. "Stranger things have happened."

Xavier shook his head. "If Elijah has no control over his brother, then Sera certainly doesn't."

"Sera apparently has the power to kill him," Damon said. "Elijah even said so. Plus, that would mean that Bonnie would no longer be at risk of dying if she tries to kill him."

Xavier sighed. "A long time ago, you gave me a choice," he said. "You told me that you wanted me to have the ability to choose whether I lived or died. Have you seriously changed that much that you would take that choice away from someone else?"

"You're my son," Damon said. "Of course I wanted you to have a choice. But, you were already dying when I gave you that choice. There is a difference between these two situations."

"The principle is the same," Xavier said. "I get where you're coming from and I even applaud your concern for Elena. But, this is her decision. No one else's."

Damon kept his gaze forward as his son returned to the house, remembering all too well the circumstances that led to his son becoming a vampire.

* * *

 _November, 1884_

 _It was just past dawn on the day that would change Xavier Salvatore's life forever, though he had no idea just how much when he woke up that morning. The rest of the house was still sleeping but Xavier knew that he had to be quiet if he were to get out of the house without his cousin hearing._

 _Sera had become a vampire back in the summer and her newfound super hearing was making it very hard for Xavier to come and go at all hours of the night as he pleased. He had lost count of the amount of times Sera had caught him coming in after a night of drinking with his friends or with the ladies that the tavern provided. But, to her credit, Sera never told Celia about his behavior. But, then again, Celia probably knew and just didn't say anything. Celia always seemed to know what was going on._

 _Xavier had come to the determination that the easiest way to get out of the house without being noticed would be through the window. The day before, he had taken some rope from the barn where their horses slept and had hidden it under one of the loose floorboards in his room. Now, he removed it from its hiding place and tied one end of the rope to his bedpost. Once he was sure that it was secure, Xavier opened his window and threw the rest of the rope down to the ground. Then, he grabbed his pistol, put it in his belt, and climbed down to the ground._

 _The purpose of his sneaking around was that Xavier had been challenged to a duel and, if Sera and Celia knew about it, they would certainly have stopped him. The reason why he had been challenged to a duel was that Xavier had stood up the sister of one James Campbell, who was notorious throughout all of Mystic Falls for having a temper. Xavier tried to reason with him that his reaction was a bit over the top, but James announced to the whole tavern that what Xavier had done was an offence against his sister and his family and that it would not be tolerated. Xavier was still trying to get James to calm down when James slapped him across the face with his glove._

 _And now, Xavier found himself walking across an empty field, a pistol in his hand, taking steps according to the man calling out the paces. Xavier was a good shot. He knew that, if he wanted to, he could kill James. But, he wasn't here to kill anyone. He was here to let James have his moment and then they could go back to their regular lives._

 _He turned to face James when he was told to and they both fired their weapons at the same time. Xavier had missed James completely, on purpose, but James had hit his mark in the perfect spot. Xavier's eyes widened in pain as he looked down at his bleeding chest. Almost in a daze, his fingers lightly touched where the blood was dripping from his body._

 _James had shot him in the heart._

 _Xavier looked back at James, who had a look of panic on his face. Clearly, he hadn't been expecting to succeed in his attempt. He ran away, along with the man who had been there to mediate, as Xavier fell on his back. Staring up at the sky, getting brighter and brighter by the minute, Xavier only thought about his family. How would they react to his death? How long before they found him?_

 _A shadow crossed into his line of sight and Xavier thought he heard his father's voice. But, everything was becoming blurry and the voice he heard seemed muffled. He felt something being pressed against his lips and felt warm, sticky liquid going down his throat. At that point he knew that it had to be his father…or Sera…or maybe even his Uncle Stefan…_

 _But, it didn't matter. Because Death had come for him and swallowed him up in blackness._

* * *

Alaric, who had recently been released from Klaus's bondage, showed up at the Boarding House to tell everyone that the sacrifice was going to happen that night. Of course, no one was happy by this revelation. Damon excused himself from the room and headed upstairs. Elena followed some time later, going to check on him. As the others started to bring Alaric up to speed on what had happened while Klaus had occupied his body, Stefan headed upstairs to check on Elena and Damon and Sera went to get a snack from Stefan's freezer. Her Vampire Hearing picked up on sounds of a struggle coming from upstairs, so she changed direction and headed to where the noise was coming from.

She found Stefan and Damon fighting, with Elena on the ground in some sort of mixture of shock and tears, in Damon's bedroom. Sera's brown eyes turned blood red and she used her magic to pull Damon off of Stefan and pin him against the wall. Damon grunted as his head hit the wall and he looked at his niece. "Haven't we taught you not to get in between one of our fights?"

"That rule went out the window the moment I became the more powerful being," Sera said. "What is going on up here?"

"Someone's getting a little cocky," Damon said. "Is this what we can expect now that you're one of the Originals?"

Sera glared at her uncle. "I'm not an Original," she said. "But, at the moment, I have the upper hand. So, tell me what the hell happened to cause you two to fight. Again."

"Damon fed Elena his blood," Stefan said. "So, when she dies…"

"She'll be a vampire," Sera finished. She released her magical grip on Damon and he fell to the ground. "What the hell, Uncle Damon? Do you seriously like having everyone hate you?"

Damon stood. "I'm sorry that I'm the only one taking a preventative measure that we know will work," he said.

"But, you took away her choice," Stefan said.

Damon rolled his eyes. "Admit it,"** he said, to Stefan. "You just wish you had the balls to do it yourself."**

Stefan gritted his teeth and rushed at Damon, only to be stopped by an invisible force as Sera raised her hand in his direction. Stefan fell backwards, landing on his back, and he looked up at his daughter.

"No more fighting," Sera said. She looked between her father and uncle. "This is not going to get us anywhere."

"No," Damon agreed. "But, it's worth it."

They watched as Damon left the room. Sera's eyes turned back to their normal brown color as she turned and looked at Stefan and Elena. "I'm sorry," she said, to Elena. She looked at her father. "I'll leave you two to talk."

She turned to leave when Stefan stopped her. "Sera, wait," he said. She stopped and turned back to face him. "Thank you," Stefan said.

Sera stared at her father for a moment and then looked at Elena. "Think about it this way. If you become a vampire, you two can be together forever," she said. "And then, all of this crap would be worth it."

Sera turned and left the room. But, she wasn't surprised to hear her father coming after her. Only, when she turned around, it wasn't her father, but Elena.

"I have nothing against you, Elena," Sera said, before she had a chance to say anything.

"It sure doesn't sound like that," Elena said, crossing her arms over her stomach. "Sounds the opposite, actually."

"I've just been in a bad mood, today, ok?" Sera said. "Forget what I said."

"I can't just forget it," Elena said. "You're making it sound like it's been an inconvenience to help us."

"It's not like that."

"Is it because they had you give me your house?"

Sera rolled her eyes. "It wasn't a gift, it was a loan."

"Then, what is it?" Elena said. "I thought we were becoming friends."

Sera stared at Elena for a moment. "I still think that," she replied. "I just don't want to see my father's heart broken. Again."

"You honestly think that I will break his heart?" Elena said. "I love him."

"You say that now," Sera said. "But, what is going to happen when you are forty and he is still 'seventeen'? What happens when you want children and he can't give you any? If you two were to ever be together, you would have to become a vampire, because there is no cure for what my father has." Elena looked to the ground. "I'm only trying to be honest," Sera continued. "No one should be forced into such a life-changing decision. Uncle Damon was wrong with what he did to you, no matter his good intentions. But, this is something that you two should have discussed long before now."

Elena looked back up at her boyfriend's daughter. "It's not an easy topic to discuss."

"No, it's not," Sera agreed. She motioned to Damon's room, where Stefan was watching them from the doorway. "He's waiting for you. Best get back to him."

She turned and continued on down the hallway and back downstairs.

* * *

 _November, 1884_

 _Xavier woke with a gasp and found himself not in the grassy field, but in his bedroom. The rope he had attached to his bed was gone, the window was closed, and bits of blood stained his otherwise pristine white sheets. He touched the spot where he had been shot to find that it had been completely healed. He was supposed to be dead. How was he not dead?_

 _Then, he remembered._

 _He turned to his right to find Damon sitting in a chair by his bedside. "Father?" he said, his voice scratchy from lack of use. "What happened?"_

 _"You were shot," came Damon's reply. "Straight through the heart. You're lucky that I showed up when I did. Otherwise, there would have been a very different ending to this story." Xavier looked back down at his chest as Damon dragged the chair a little closer to his son's bed. "You're now in transition, Xavier."_

 _Xavier looked back at Damon. "Transition?" he repeated. "So, I…"_

 _Damon nodded once. "Yes," he said. "You did die. But, luckily for you, you died with my blood in your system. So, now you have a choice to make. You can either feed and become a vampire or you can die. It's your choice."_

 _"You're not going to force me to feed?"_

 _Damon shook his head. "Your uncle did that to me and I've hated him for it for the last twenty years," he replied. "I want this to be your decision. Do I want to see you die? Of course not. But, I also don't want to subject you to this lifestyle unless you truly want it for yourself. You have to do what you think is best for you and no one else." He took his son's hand in his own and squeezed it. "I'm going to go and get Celia and tell her that you're awake. I'll be back to sit with you this afternoon."_

 _Xavier nodded as Damon stood and left his room, closing the door behind him. He sighed as he rested his head back on his pillows, having absolutely no idea what he was going to do now._

* * *

Xavier had gone with Alaric to the Grille where they found Damon sitting at the bar. Sera had updated both of them on what had happened upstairs and, while Xavier was furious at his father for not heeding his advice, he knew that what Damon needed right now was someone to talk to, not to get yelled at by. But, their conversation had to be put on hold when Klaus decided to join them.

Damon tried to get Klaus to postpone the ritual, but Klaus was having none of that. As Klaus moved to leave, after telling them not to mess anything up or they would die, he stopped and turned back to the three men.

"Oh, and do tell Serafina that I thoroughly enjoyed our reunion the other night at the dance," Klaus said. "I can't wait to see her again, especially now that her secret is no longer a secret."

Xavier sighed as Klaus left the Grille. "That can't be a good sign."

"Sera can handle it," Damon said. "I saw proof of that earlier when she pinned me to the wall."

Damon then started talking about what they could do to mess up the ritual, despite Klaus's warning. The conversation turned to getting Klaus's werewolf out of the equation and, despite Alaric repeating himself that it wasn't a good idea, he agreed to help anyway. Xavier didn't have much choice but to join in as well, because he certainly wasn't going to let Alaric and Damon do anything without his help.

Xavier had followed Damon to the woods and had been surprised when Matt had shown up with a gun filled with wooden bullets. After Damon knocked Matt out, they went down to where Tyler and Caroline had been locked up by Klaus and helped to release both of them. Above ground, Day had turned into Night and, while Matt was coming to, Tyler's monthly transformation had started.

Xavier had never actually seen a werewolf transform before and he had to admit that it was a strange thing to witness. Bones were breaking in ways they shouldn't be breaking and Xavier could only imagine the amount of pain that Tyler was in. Caroline was trying to keep Tyler calm, but it wasn't really working. At one point, Tyler seemed ready to lunge at them, but Damon beat him to it. Tyler managed to pin Damon to the ground and was snapping at him when Xavier pulled Tyler off of Damon and threw him as far as possible away from the rest of their group. Tyler landed on the ground with a thud and then told all of them to leave.

Damon gave Caroline and Matt bullets to use if Tyler got too out of control, sending them towards the Lockwood Cellar where Tyler had said it would be best for him to be tied up. Xavier then followed Damon out of the woods, unsure as to what they were heading to do next.

* * *

 _November, 1884_

 _Xavier had brought himself into a sitting position and turned to look at the door when Celia came inside. "Celia," he said. "I'm so sorry…"_

 _Celia sighed. "I know you are, Xavier," she said. She sat down in the chair previously occupied by Damon. "And, I'm sorry too. I never wanted to see you in this position. You or Sera."_

 _"I know." Xavier hung his head. "I don't know what to do."_

 _Celia took his hand in her own. "What does your heart tell you?"_

 _Xavier looked at the only mother he had ever known. "I don't want to die," he said. "But, I don't know if I can bring myself to feed. I've seen and heard about how it is for Father and Uncle Stefan. I don't know if I can handle doing what they have to do."_

 _Celia sighed. "Your father and uncle do things in ways that they feel is right, whether or not it actually is," she said. "But, you are your own person, Xavier. You don't have to do what they do. You can be different. Look at Sera."_

 _"But, Sera has you," Xavier said. "She has you to teach her self-control."_

 _"And, you also have me," Celia said. "I will never abandon you, Xavier. You've been a part of my family for the last twenty-two years. If you decide to feed and complete the transition, I will help you just as I have been helping Sera. I promise."_

 _Xavier smiled a little at Celia as the door opened and Damon walked in, with Sera close behind. "How are things going in here?" Damon asked._

 _"Just fine," Xavier said. He turned and looked at his father. "I'm going to do it. I'm going to feed."_

 _Damon stiffened slightly. "Are you sure?" he asked. "A decision such as this is not one to be taken lightly."_

 _"Positive," Xavier said, with a nod. "Because I know that things will be different this time. Because this is my new life to live. And, I can choose what I do with it."_

 _Damon smiled at his son. "That's my boy."_

 _Celia took a small knife out of the pocket of her dress and drew the blade across her wrist. "In that case, take a drink," she said._

 _Xavier began to refuse. "Celia, I…"_

 _"It was my blood that Sera fed on to complete her transition, and you will do the same," Celia said. "Don't worry, I will let you know when to stop."_

 _Xavier hesitated for another moment, but then felt his vampire instincts kick in. He carefully took hold of Celia's arm and began drinking from the cut on her wrist. After a few moments, Celia stopped him. "That's enough, Xavier," she said. She gently pushed Xavier away from her. "We'll get you more later."_

 _Xavier sat back, his eyes closed as he felt the sensation that transitioning gave him. When he opened his eyes, the whites had turned blood red and his fangs shown for all to see._

 _And, just like that, Xavier Salvatore had become a vampire._

* * *

"Dad, what's the plan?" Xavier asked, when they arrived at Alaric's apartment building.

"Stefan said that Klaus already has Elena," Damon said. "We're going to get him to postpone the ritual."

"Are you insane?" Xavier said. "After what we just did with Tyler and Caroline, we need to be as far away from Klaus as possible. He will kill us."

"Then, go home," Damon said. "You don't have to be here for this."

"Yes I do," Xavier said. "I'm certainly not going to let you do this alone."

"Then, stay in the hallway," Damon said. "Don't let him know you're there unless absolutely necessary."

Xavier nodded and did as Damon said as they reached Alaric's apartment and Damon broke down the door. He listened as Damon and Klaus talked, and as Klaus boasted about having a back-up of everything that he needed for his ritual. Xavier hid himself even more when Klaus left. Confused about where his father was, Xavier carefully made his way to the apartment and found Damon on the ground, being fed a blood bag by Katherine. While he was slightly confused as to why she was there, he also didn't care at the same time.

"What the hell happened?" Xavier asked, rushing in and kneeling on the ground next to his father.

"He'll be fine," Katherine assured him. "Once he wakes up."

Katherine slapped Damon's cheek a couple of times and he finally started coming to. She explained how Klaus had gone off to do the ritual and that she couldn't stop him, or else her vervain cover would have been blown. He listened as Katherine explained that she had to call Jenna and that Jenna was going to be Klaus's backup vampire. When Damon asked why Klaus didn't just use him, Katherine pointed out something that neither Damon nor Xavier had noticed before. Something that Xavier had hoped that he would never see.

Damon had been bitten by Tyler.

* * *

 **I hope that you like this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	12. Clash of the Hybrids

"You have to say something."

Xavier and Damon had left Katherine behind at Alaric's apartment and were now pulling into the driveway of the Boarding House. Xavier didn't hear much of the conversation that had taken place between his father and Katherine after the revelation of the werewolf bite. His mind had been too focused on trying to figure out what could be done to stop Damon from dying. Xavier shrugged. "What do you want me to say?"

"Anything," Damon replied. "Anything is better than this awkward silence." He looked at his son. "There's nothing you can do, kid," he said.

"There's always something that can be done," Xavier replied. "There is always another way."

"Sometimes there isn't," Damon replied. They both got out of Damon's car and closed the doors behind them.

"Maybe Sera knows something."

"If she did, why didn't she do anything to save Rose?" Damon countered. Xavier hung his head. "You had to know that something like this would happen eventually."

"Not when you spend your whole life with a father who is an immortal vampire."

"Point taken," Damon said. He walked around the car until he was standing next to his son. "Look, don't tell anyone about the bite, alright?"

"Seriously?" Xavier said. "You're not even going to tell Uncle Stefan and Sera?"

"Everyone has enough on their minds right now dealing with Klaus and his plans to worry about me and a werewolf bite," Damon replied. "Promise me you won't tell anyone, Xavier."

Xavier stared at Damon for a moment before nodding. "Fine."

Damon patted his son on the shoulder before bringing him into his embrace. The two hugged for a few moments before separating. "Alright," Damon said. "Let's find out what's going on with the others."

Xavier watched as Damon walked into the Boarding House, wondering how long they had before Damon started going insane.

* * *

It had been a semi-awkward car ride for Sera, given the fact that both Elijah and Stefan were in the car together. But, at least she had Alaric with her to make some conversation. They were heading to the house where Bonnie had been hiding out with Jeremy and Elijah was explaining to them how the ritual would proceed. Klaus had already taken Elena, so there was no time to lose. As she listened, Sera tried to figure out if there was a way where she could intervene without harming any of those involved and was interested in finding out whether or not Bonnie had found anything.

When Damon called with the news that Klaus had taken Jenna and had turned her into a vampire for the sacrifice, it had been a twist that no one had seen coming. When Alaric went into the house to get Bonnie and talk to Jeremy, Sera had been thrust into another awkward moment as she stood waiting in between her father and her grandfather.

"There has to be something we can do," Stefan said. "We can't allow Jenna to die."

"What do you suggest?" Elijah asked. "Who would you give my brother in her place?"

Stefan was silent for a moment. "Me."

"No!" Sera exclaimed automatically. "Absolutely not!"

"Do you have a better plan?" Stefan asked.

"Any plan that avoids your death is a better plan," Sera replied.

"I'm listening."

"Let me go and take him down myself," Sera said.

Elijah briefly looked to the ground and then back at his granddaughter. "What if Klaus gains the upper hand, as he did at the dance?"

"That only happened because he was in Alaric's body," Sera said. "I couldn't kill him then or I'd be killing Alaric."

"And, now he is in his own body," Stefan said. "He is more powerful now. He could take you down in a heartbeat if he wanted."

"Elijah, you said that a witch with enough power could kill him," Sera said, looking at her grandfather. "That's why Klaus was afraid of me and Mom, right? Even he knows that I could kill him. Now that he's back in his own body, let me try again."

"Klaus knows that you are in town," Elijah reminded her. "What if he is prepared for your intervention?"

"I won't allow you to put yourself at risk in such a way," Stefan said, causing Sera to turn and look at him. "Not for a second time."

Sera stared at her father. "Right back at you."

The father and daughter stared at each other as Bonnie walked out of the house. Sera listened as Stefan and Elijah brought Bonnie up to speed about what had happened. Bonnie was ready to go and kill Klaus too, but Stefan reminded her that if she used that much power she would actually die.

"All the more reason to let me have a second chance with him," Sera said.

"How about this," Elijah interjected. "How about we use both plans?"

"What do you mean?" Bonnie asked. "What plans?"

"We're going to offer another vampire. One that he'll want more,"** Stefan said. "Me."**

"So, we allow Stefan to offer himself to Klaus as a replacement for Jenna," Elijah explained. "Meanwhile, Serafina is behind the scenes, waiting to intervene. That way, Jenna will be out of harm's way and we still have the ability to take Klaus down. Best of both worlds."

"Am I the only one who realizes that Klaus won't go for something like this?" Sera said. "He always seems to be one step ahead of us, as evidenced by him having backups of everything that he needs. He won't fall for any tricks. Elijah, you, of all people, should know that better than anyone else."

"Which is why you will go with your father," Elijah said, glancing at Stefan. "So that, if my brother does not do as we expect, you can at least keep him occupied until the rest of us can get there. Then, you and Bonnie can work together to get him to his weakest point and I will finish him once and for all."

"The breaking of the curse still requires the death of a vampire," Sera pointed out.

"Sera…"

"You are not going to sacrifice yourself," Sera said, looking at her father. "That is not an option."

"Sera, there's no other choice."

"There's always another choice!" Sera exclaimed.

"Serafina…" Elijah began.

"I can't stay here and listen to this," Sera said. She looked at her father. "You want to play the sacrificial martyr, fine! Go right ahead! But, don't expect me to stand by and watch you do it."

She turned and stormed off towards the back of the house.

* * *

Stefan found his daughter standing with her back to the house and her arms crossed. He walked over to her and came to a stop just behind her. "You know I can't leave with things like this between us."

"Then, don't leave."

Stefan put his hands in his pockets. "I have to," he said. "You know that."

"No, see, here's the thing," Sera said. "You don't have to. You're choosing to. You're choosing to put yourself in harm's way for your human girlfriend. There are plenty of other vampires out there that we could use for a trade. It doesn't have to be you."

"So, you're willing to pull an innocent vampire off the streets and have Klaus kill them instead?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Sera said. "Besides, what vampire is truly innocent? Honestly?"

"I taught you better than that, Sera. Your mother taught you better than that," Stefan said. "Talk to me. What's going on?"

Sera shrugged and turned to face her father. "I don't want to lose you," she said, simply. "I don't think it's fair that you have to be the one to sacrifice yourself to stop Klaus. I hate the fact that we've barely been able to really spend any time together that wasn't full of drama and life-threatening situations since I came home. I mean, when Uncle Damon told me that you had gotten trapped in a tomb, I expected there to be some drama, but this is bloody ridiculous. I almost didn't want to heal from the fight with Klaus at the dance because at least then you and I were just…hanging out. Watching movies and relaxing. Being like a normal dad and kid. And now you're going to walk off to your death?" She shook her head. "It's too much."

"The first time I died I was shot by your grandfather," Stefan said. "At least this time, I'm dying for a much nobler cause."

"You're not going to die." Sera twisted her wrist and used her magic to snap Stefan's neck and he collapsed to the ground in a heap. "Sorry, Dad," she said. "But, I don't plan on becoming an orphan tonight."

Sera stepped around Stefan's unconscious form and made her way to the ritual site, a plan already forming in her mind.

* * *

Sera had hidden amongst the trees and bushes that surrounded the ritual site, to get an idea of what was happening before she charged in. Elena and Jenna were each surrounded by a circle of fire and the witch Greta was standing by a cauldron. The werewolf Klaus had chosen in place of Tyler, who Sera recognized as Jules from the night they saved Caroline, was already dead and it looked like the sacrifice of the vampire was next on the list. Klaus, holding a wooden stake in his hand, seemed to be walking in between the three women, but nothing he was saying was of any import.

Klaus stopped in his pacing and turned towards the bushes in which Sera had been hiding. "I was wondering when you would show up, Serafina."

Sera rushed at Klaus, her brown eyes blood red. She grabbed him by the neck and threw him across the site into a tree. "Don't tell me that I'm becoming predictable."

Klaus stood and walked towards his niece. "Maybe just this once," he said. "After the heroics you displayed the other night, I would be surprised if you didn't make an appearance here tonight." Klaus had gotten close enough to Sera that he was able to hit her across the face with the wooden stake, his hit so powerful that she was thrown backwards, in the direction of Greta and the cauldron. Sera landed with a thud on the ground, blood from a cut on her cheek dripping onto her clothes, and looked up to see her great-uncle standing over her. "What does surprise me is that you are all alone."

Sera used her magic to throw Klaus back once more. She stood as he landed on his back. She watched as Klaus stood and wiped the dirt off of his clothes. He looked at her. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" Sera asked.

"This," Klaus motioned around him. "Intervening and trying to save people who you barely know." He pointed at Jenna. "How many interactions have you had with her, hmm? Has she really become so important to you that you would risk going up against me to save her?"

Sera and Jenna looked at each other and then back at Klaus.

"And, this one," he continued, motioning to Elena. "How much of an attachment do you have to her, truly? Is she even a true friend of yours? Or, did you just jump onto the 'Save Elena' bandwagon because Daddy happens to have an infatuation with her?"

Sera and Elena looked at each other and then back at Klaus. "What are you getting at, Klaus?" Sera asked.

"What I'm getting at is that these people don't really mean anything to you," Klaus said. "They are just two of many people that you will meet on the long road of your life. As opposed to me, who is part of your family and who has known you since the day you were born. Where is your sense of family loyalty?"

"And, who also tried to use me to his own ends. Where's the loyalty there?" Sera replied. "Family or not, I can't stand by as you destroy the lives of innocent people. No matter how long I've known them."

"Admirable," Klaus said. "So very reminiscent of your parents. But, so very stupid at the same time. I won't allow you to stand in my way. Family or not."

Klaus moved to attack Sera once more, but then cried out in pain and clutched his head as he fell to his knees, dropping the stake in the process. Jenna and Elena looked to see Sera holding her hand out towards him, a small smile playing on her lips as she kicked the stake towards the flames. "I've been told that a witch with enough power would have the ability to kill you," Sera said. "Did you forget that after all these years?"

Klaus's cries got louder as the pain intensified. "What are you doing to me?"

"Oh, a multitude of things," Sera replied. "Whatever I can think of really. Whatever will make you get to the point where I can rip your heart from your chest."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jenna put her hand on her mouth in shock. Klaus continued to writhe on the ground in pain. Sera was getting a strange sort of thrill of being able to bring the powerful Original down in such a way. It had been a long time since she used her power in such a fashion and there was a part of her that was really enjoying it. When Klaus got to the point where he wouldn't be able to handle much more, Sera released her magical hold on him and the pain subsided. She walked up to Klaus and knelt beside him. Just as she was about to plunge her hand into his chest, Sera felt something embed itself into her back.

"Sera!" Elena cried out.

Sera's mouth opened in pain as the wood was pushed through her back and through to her chest. Her blood red irises turned back to brown. She turned her head to look over her shoulder and saw Greta standing behind her and the wooden stake Klaus dropped and that she thought had burned protruding from her back. Klaus managed to bring himself into a standing position as he looked down on his great-niece. He quickly snapped the stake in half, breaking the tip off and leaving it inside her.

"Thank you, Greta," Klaus said, smiling at the witch. "You may go back to your work now." Greta did as commanded and Klaus looked back down at Sera. "Looks like you forgot about my witch," he said. "I'm curious as to why you didn't kill her first to make sure she didn't intervene? Was that you being heroic again?"

Sera winced as she tried to get the tip of the stake out of her chest. Klaus almost laughed at her. "Just think, Serafina," he said. "Once my curse is broken, you and I will both be hybrids. The Original Hybrid and the Impossible Hybrid. Two of the most powerful beings in the world."

Klaus's use of the moniker that had been given to her shortly after her transition, after a majority of the supernatural community had discovered her continued existence as a witch and a vampire, almost caught her off guard. She hadn't heard that name in years. Klaus turned and started to walk towards Greta. "Whenever you're ready, Greta."**

Sera winced as she turned herself around on her knees in the direction of Klaus and Greta. As Greta began the spell, Sera held her hand out in that direction, giving Greta a migraine. Greta grabbed her head in pain and Klaus turned to find his great-niece interrupting once again. He went over to her and grabbed both of her hands, pinning them behind her back as he pulled her against him. She cried out in pain, as Greta recovered from her magical headache and began the spell once more.

"Just watch," he whispered in her ear, as her eyes went back to their natural brown. "Just watch as your beloved uncle becomes the true hybrid he was always meant to be."

Sera had no choice but to do as Klaus said, because she certainly was not going to shut her eyes and look away. If there was another chance for her to intervene, she would take it. The circle of fire disappeared around Jenna and, at Vampire Speed, Jenna rushed at Greta and started to feed on her. Klaus released Sera from his grip and she fell forward.

"So you won't stop me again…"

Sera felt her neck snap and with it came blackness.

* * *

When Sera woke, she found that Klaus had killed Jenna. She looked to Elena, who held her finger to her lips to indicate to Sera that she should be quiet and then pointed to the bushes and trees behind Sera. Sera slowly turned and found her father standing amongst the brush, staring at her. Surprisingly enough, he didn't look mad. He looked more concerned than anything else.

Stefan mouthed to her. "Are you ok?"

Sera merely showed him the tip of the stake coming out of her chest and mouthed back "I've been better."

Klaus started walking towards Elena and Sera pretended she was still unconscious. "It's time."

The circle of fire disappeared around Elena and she walked to where Greta was performing the spell. Sera brought herself into a kneeling position once more and she and Stefan both watched as Klaus fed on Elena and then dropped her on the stone.

"I can feel it,"** Klaus said, as he took in the sensation of his new power. "It's happening."**

Klaus began to transform into a werewolf at the sight of the full moon. Sera watched as his bones started breaking and his eyes took on a bright gold color, much like her blood red ones when she used her magic. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw some movement in the bushes and locked gazes with Bonnie. The two nodded at each other and lightning struck. Klaus was thrown to the side as Bonnie came onto the scene. Sera winced as she stood and she covered the stake coming from her chest with her left hand. She walked alongside Bonnie, chanting the same spell, her eyes now back to their blood red color. Fire sprang up around them and the wind began to blow.

Klaus was crying out in pain, again, as Damon and Stefan came onto the scene as well. Damon snapped Greta's neck and grabbed the unconscious Elena. Stefan told Damon to get Elena to safety and that he was going to stay until Klaus was dead. Damon left with little hesitation.

Sera and Bonnie walked right up to Klaus as he writhed in pain. They only stopped when Elijah calmly walked over to his brother, who was now lying against a rock, weak from his two ordeals. Sera kept her gaze on her grandfather and great-uncle as her father came and stood beside her. They watched as Elijah plunged his hand into Klaus's chest, grabbing his heart.

"In the name of our family, Niklaus,"**

"I didn't bury them at sea."**

Sera took a couple steps forward. "What did you just say?"

"Their bodies are safe,"** Klaus continued. "If you kill me, you'll never find them."**

"No," Sera said. "Don't listen to him, Elijah. I can find them, you know I can."

Elijah looked at his granddaughter and then back at his brother. "Elijah,"** Klaus said. "I can take you to them."**

"Elijah," Sera said, with a warning tone. "You can't trust him. How do we know that he's not lying just to save his skin? If they are truly out there, I can find them. We don't need him."

"I give you my word, brother."**

Elijah looked at Sera. "I'm sorry."**

Elijah grabbed Klaus and spirited him away to safety before any of them had a chance to stop him. Sera blinked and her eyes turned back to their natural brown before she turned and looked at her father and Bonnie. "Now what?"

* * *

Upon their return home, Xavier explained to Sera how, prior to the showdown at the ritual site, Bonnie had performed a ritual on John to link him to Elena so that, when Elena was revived, she wouldn't be in transition. The good part about that was that Elena was not a vampire. The bad part was that John was now dead. Elena and Jeremy had now lost both of the remaining family members that they had left.

Sera was getting ready for the funeral when she heard a knock at her bedroom door. She saw Stefan from the reflection in the mirror. "Are you here to yell at me for going after Klaus by myself?"

"Not entirely," Stefan said. "I wanted to see how you were after getting staked, again."

"All healed up," Sera replied, patting the spot on her chest where she had been stabbed. "Right as rain."

Stefan nodded. "Good," he said. He was quiet for a moment. "What you did was reckless, Sera."

"What I did was for your own good," Sera replied. "I wasn't going to let you sacrifice yourself when I have the power to change things."

"Klaus still got the upper hand on you," Stefan said.

"No, Greta got the upper hand on me," Sera corrected him. "And, only because she was a coward and stabbed me in the back. I had Klaus to the point we needed him to be at. If Greta hadn't stabbed me, Klaus would have been dead before you all got there."

"You still shouldn't be going off and doing things like that by yourself, power or no power," Stefan said. "When I woke and found that you were gone…" He stopped, knowing that the words didn't need to be said for Sera to understand. "You should have seen the look on Elijah's face when I told him and the others what you did. You could actually see the fear in his eyes." He looked at Sera. "It wasn't a pleasant feeling."

Sera sighed. "You once said that you would always protect me," she said. "And, I will always protect you. Nothing will ever change that."

Stefan nodded. "I know that I've been giving you the cold shoulder recently," he said, changing the topic. "And, I shouldn't have done that."

"You had every right to," Sera said. "I kept something major from you for over a century. You have every right to be mad at me."

"My point is that I don't want to be anymore," Stefan said. "While I don't agree with what you did, I understand that you did it for your mother. I can't really fault you for that."

Sera smiled as she and Stefan hugged. "Thanks, Dad," she said. "I'm sorry that I lied to you."

Stefan pulled away from his daughter. "I forgive you," he said. "I also heard what you and Elena discussed the other night."

"I had a feeling you might have."

"I just wanted to let you know that you were right," Stefan said. "We should have talked about this subject a long time ago. I may not agree with how you said it, but it did have to be said."

"And, did you talk about it?"

Stefan nodded. "Yeah, we did."

Sera smiled a little at him. "Good," she said. "We had best get to the cemetery. It's poor manners if we arrive late."

* * *

As to be expected, the funeral was a sad affair. Sera and Xavier had been to too many funerals in their long lifetimes, but such things came with being vampires. They remained silent and in the back as the others paid their respects. When the funeral ended and the group began to go their separate ways, Stefan and Sera walked up to where Damon and Xavier were standing, away from the others.

"We're going to head back to the house,"** Stefan said. Xavier turned to look at his uncle and cousin, but Damon stayed facing forward.

"I think I'll skip the coffee and tea cakes,"** Damon replied.

"Damon, she needs us right now,"** Stefan said. "All of us."**

"And now what's the plan, Stefan?"** Damon asked. "The curse is broken. How does one go about killing an all-powerful wolf-vamp and his two faced older brother?"**

"I have no idea,"** Stefan replied.

"But, we'll figure it out," Sera said.

"Well, we need to figure it out and fast," Damon said, turning to look at Stefan, Sera, and Xavier.

"I'm not going to let Elena lose anyone else."**

"I wouldn't make any promises, brother."** Damon rolled up his sleeve. "Tyler Lockwood bit me."**

Sera looked at Xavier, who looked as if he was ready to cry, before looking at the bite on her uncle's arm. As Stefan examined Damon's wound, Sera grabbed her cousin's hand and allowed him to squeeze it as hard as he wanted to stop himself from breaking down and crying. She bit her lip to keep herself from crying as well.

"We'll find something,"** Stefan whispered, looking at his daughter and nephew before looking back at his brother. "A cure."**

"There's no cure, Stefan,"** Damon replied.

"We kept Elena human, right?"** Stefan said. He motioned to Sera. "My daughter is a hybrid that should not even exist. There has got to be something that we just don't know about yet."

"Keep this from Elena,"** Damon said. "Last thing she needs is another grave to mourn."**

The three of them watched as Damon walked away, knowing that they had to do something. One thing was certain.

They were not going to let him die.

* * *

 **I hope you like this new chapter! Please let me know what you think!**


	13. Just the Beginning

Xavier never expected to be woken up with the words "Your father just tried to kill himself."

Now, he and Damon were locked together in the basement of the Boarding House. Stefan hadn't been too keen on the idea of Xavier locking himself in the cell with Damon, but Xavier wouldn't have it any other way. If these were to be his father's final moments, then he was going to be with him, not outside the door as he listened to him die.

"Your uncle's right, you know," Damon said, once Stefan had left. "You shouldn't be in here."

"I'm not leaving you," Xavier said.

"Do you really want to watch as I waste away?" Damon asked. "There's a reason why I did what I did this morning, you know."

"I would rather sit here and watch you waste away than wake up to find you as dust," Xavier said. "How could you do that to me, Dad? How could you even think of taking away my chance of saying goodbye?"

Damon wouldn't look Xavier in the eyes. "Because I knew it would hurt," he said. "Both you and me."

"Yeah, you're right," Xavier agreed, nodding. "It is going to hurt. It's going to hurt like hell. But, saying goodbye to the ones you love is a part of life. We still have time to prepare."

"You're not praying that Sera and Bonnie find a solution to this problem?"

"Oh, I am," Xavier replied. "I haven't stopped praying for such a miracle since you revealed that bite to me. But, I am also trying to prepare myself for the worst." He paused. "Something you taught me long ago."

Damon cracked a smile. "That I did."

Damon started coughing up some more blood and Xavier crawled over to him and rubbed his back, much like Celia used to do whenever Xavier got sick as a human. "I'm not going anywhere, Dad," he assured his father. "I'll be right here, the entire time."

* * *

Sera had spent hours combing through Celia's grimoire, searching for a way to save Damon from the werewolf bite that was, inevitably, going to kill him. Bonnie had been doing the same with her family's spell books but, so far, nothing had been found. After Bonnie came back from grabbing lunch to find Sera still going through Celia's spells, she knew that she had to get her new friend to take a break.

"You need to rest a bit, Sera," Bonnie said. "You're going to tire yourself out if you continue like this."

"I need to find a solution," Sera said, not looking up from her mother's book. "I can't let my uncle die."

"I get that," Bonnie said. "But, you've been at this for hours, Sera. I think you've only stopped when it's time to sleep and even then I doubt you've been sleeping much." Bonnie took hold of Sera's hand, finally getting Sera to look at her. "They're showing _Gone With the Wind_ in the Town Square today. Caroline called and wanted to see if we wanted to meet her, Jeremy, and Elena and I told her that you would go."

"But, Bonnie…"

"Sera, you need this," Bonnie said. "I will keep searching while you are gone. No one is going to be mad at you for stopping for a little bit."

"You didn't tell Caroline, did you?"

Bonnie shook her head. "No, I didn't," she said. "That's not for me to tell." She placed a bookmark in the page that Sera had been studying and closed Celia's grimoire. "Now, go!" She said. "They're going to meet you there. Caroline's got all the food prepared. You just need to show up."

Sera smiled a little and Bonnie hugged her. "Thank you," Sera said.

Bonnie nodded and then pulled away. "Go! Have fun!"

* * *

Sera found Caroline, Jeremy, and Elena sitting on a picnic blanket in the middle of Town Square. She couldn't help but smile at the sight around her. Mystic Falls never ceased to go all out, even for just a simple movie showing.

"This is amazing," Sera said, causing the trio to turn and look at her. "I haven't been to one of these in a long time."

"Sera! You're here!" Caroline exclaimed, jumping up to hug her new friend. "How are you feeling?"

Sera sighed. "Better," she replied. It wasn't entirely a lie. "Not great, but better."

"Glad to hear it," Jeremy chimed in. "Come on, take a seat."

"As always, there is plenty of food," Caroline said. "Take as much as you want."

Sera sat down in between Elena and Jeremy. "Looks great," she said. "But, you're missing one crucial thing."

"What's that?" Elena asked.

"Popcorn." Sera smiled as her friends started laughing a bit at her lame joke. "What?" She continued. "I'm just saying, popcorn and movies is like peanut butter and jelly."

"Yeah, well, we don't need popcorn," Caroline said. "What we have is way better."

Sera laughed a little. Bonnie was right, she needed this. Just a little bit of time to try and forget, even for a moment, all of the things that were happening in their lives.

* * *

The movie was already playing when Sera got the call from her cousin. "Xavier, slow down!" She said, walking away from the crowd so as not to disturb the other movie-goers. "Tell me what happened."

 _"I was with Dad in the cell. He's getting bad, Sera. He's starting to hallucinate about Katherine and 1864. Anyways, Alaric went to get him some blood. Then, all of a sudden, Sheriff Forbes appears with one of her deputies. Dad grabs her and throws her into the wall and then just took off! I have no idea where he is now!"_

"Alright, I'll find him," Sera said. "You and Alaric get here as soon as you can, alright?"

 _"Yeah, alright. Just, be careful, Sera. Dad's…he's not himself."_

"I will," Sera promised. She hung up the phone and turned to find Caroline, Bonnie, and Jeremy walking towards her. Elena had left after Stefan had made a surprise visit to the Town Square and Bonnie had joined them just before the movie started.

"I take it you got a similar phone call," Jeremy said, holding up his phone. "Damon's MIA, Elena's gone too."

Sera nodded. "Yeah, pretty much," she replied. "Minus the Elena part, I don't think Xavier knew about that."

"Alright, so you and I will go and search for them?"

Sera nodded again as Bonnie spoke up. "If Damon is off the rails, there is nothing we can do to stop him,"** she said, primarily to Jeremy. "Let us go with Sera. We can take care of it."

"You keep doing this!"** Jeremy said, his voice getting a little angry. "You left me behind before and, guess what? Jenna still died. Now, I'm going to find my sister and you go ahead and you try to stop me."** He turned to Sera. "You coming?"

Sera nodded once and Jeremy started walking away. She looked at Bonnie and Caroline and shrugged before she followed. Their search did not take them far away from the Town Square. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a familiar profile. "Jeremy!" She said. "Over here!"

Jeremy turned and followed Sera to where they saw Damon stumbling through the crowd. "Uncle Damon?" Sera said, stepping in front of him.

Damon blinked a couple of times before he recognized his niece standing before him. "Sera…" he said. He looked at Jeremy when Jeremy joined them. "Where's Elena?"** He asked. "I need to see Elena now."**

"Hey, let's get you out of here first, alright?"** Jeremy said, as he tried to lead Damon away. Damon collapsed into Jeremy's arms. Jeremy adjusted his grip on Damon so that he and Sera both carried Damon between them.

"Where should we take him?" Sera asked. "Back to the Boarding House?"

Jeremy shook his head. "No, that's too far away," he said. "Let's take him to the Grille. We can keep him there until Xavier and Alaric show up."

Sera nodded and they continued their journey to the Grille, hoping that Alaric and Xavier arrived sooner rather than later.

* * *

Things at the Grille had taken a dramatic turn when Sheriff Forbes showed up and, in an attempt to shoot Damon, shot Jeremy in the chest. Bonnie and Caroline arrived shortly after and Bonnie told Sera to go after Damon as Caroline used her blood to try and save Jeremy's life. Sera hesitated but only for a moment because she knew that Damon out in town in his current state spelled disaster.

"Sera!" She turned when she heard her cousin's voice. "What the hell happened?" Xavier asked. "How did Jeremy get shot?"

"Is he alright?" Sera asked, ignoring her cousin's question.

"Not really, but I think Bonnie has a way to save him," Xavier said. "I didn't stay long when I didn't see you and Dad there. Alaric told me to come and help you."

"Sheriff Forbes was trying to shoot Uncle Damon but shot Jeremy instead," Sera quickly explained. "Uncle Damon used Vampire Speed to escape just as she pulled the trigger."

"Jesus," Xavier swore. "Where do you think he went?"

"My guess?" Sera said. "After Elena. Speaking of, do you know where Dad is?"

"No idea," Xavier said. "Why?"

"He stopped by the Town Square earlier, talked to Elena, and then left," Sera said. "She left shortly after he did, I'm assuming to talk to Uncle Damon, and I haven't heard from Dad since."

"I'm sure Uncle Stefan is just trying to figure out how to save Dad," Xavier said. "I wouldn't worry too much."

Sera nodded as they both continued with their search. "I suppose."

They circled back around to the Town Square and Xavier's Vampire Hearing picked up on Elena begging Damon to stop. "I hear her," Xavier said.

Sera nodded. "So do I." She scanned the area and watched as Damon fell to his knees. "There!" She said. "I see him!"

Sera and Xavier ran over to where Damon had fallen on the ground. Xavier bent down to pick Damon back up and Sera looked at Elena. "Are you alright?"

Elena nodded. They both watched as Damon fell forward into his son's arms. Xavier looked back up at his cousin and Elena. "We need to get him home," he said. "Now."

* * *

They had gotten Damon back to the Boarding House and into his bed. Now, they were waiting for the inevitable. Damon didn't have much time left and there was nothing they could do to save him now.

Xavier was sitting beside Damon on his bed. Sera was standing at the window of her uncle's bedroom, trying call after call to get a hold of Stefan, but her father never picked up. She knew that he would never forgive himself if he wasn't there when Damon breathed his last. But, there was nothing Sera could do if Stefan wasn't answering the phone.

Damon began what could only be described as his deathbed confessional as Elena joined him on the bed and took him into her arms. He talked about how Stefan wasn't the one who made him love Katherine, how it had been his choice, how he shouldn't have blamed Stefan for what had happened.

"Tell Stefan, I'm sorry,"** Damon said. "Ok?"**

Sera walked over to her uncle's bed. "I've been trying to call him, Uncle Damon, but he's not answering."

"No doubt he's trying to come up with a Hail Mary for this sad situation," Damon replied. He reached over and took his niece's hand. "Continue to kick ass, Sera," he said. "In that amazing witchy way of yours. You've never ceased to amaze me with what you could do. I love you, my favorite niece."

Sera had tears in her eyes as she squeezed Damon's hand. "Only niece," she said, her voice shaking. "I love you too, Uncle Damon."

Damon smiled at her and released her hand before looking at his son. "You deserved better than me...and I certainly did not deserve you."

Xavier didn't even realize that he had tears in his eyes until he felt his cousin's hand on his shoulder. He quickly wiped them away, not wanting his father to see him cry. He shook his head. "Don't say that," he said. "I couldn't have wished for anyone else besides you."

Damon smiled at him. "It's been an honor to be your father, Xavier," he said. "I know that I couldn't always be there for you, but I loved seeing you grow into the man who sits before me today. I'm proud of you. Always have been. I love you, Xavier."

Xavier felt the tears roll down his cheeks. "I love you too, Dad."

Damon took hold of his son's hand and Elena wiped the tears coming down her cheeks as well. He didn't let go of it as he turned to talk to Elena, to share his final thoughts with her, and Xavier knew that he wasn't going to let go of it until he died. Sera looked away for a brief moment before turning back to the others. Now, it was her turn to have her tears begin to fall.

"Well, this is a sorry scene to walk in on."

They looked up when they heard Katherine's voice. "What the hell are you doing here?" Sera demanded.

"Don't go crazy on me, hybrid," Katherine said. She held up what appeared to be a vial of blood. "I'm the one who brought the cure."**

Sera glared at Katherine as she walked towards Damon's bed. "I thought you were dead,"** Katherine said, to Elena.

"I was,"** Elena replied.

Sera and Xavier watched as Katherine fed Damon the cure, the two of them talking about how Katherine owed Damon a favor and how that was why Katherine came to save his life.

"Where's Stefan?"** Elena asked.

"Are you sure you care?"** Katherine replied.

"Where is he?"** Elena asked, again.

"He's paying for this,"** Katherine replied, holding up the cure.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sera demanded.

Katherine turned to Sera. "He gave himself over to Klaus,"** she said. "I wouldn't expect him anytime soon."**

"No…" Sera started shaking her head.

"He just…sacrificed everything to save his brother,"** Katherine continued.

Sera didn't hear anything else that transpired between Katherine and Elena as she pulled her phone out of her pocket and tried calling Stefan one more time. She didn't even hear Katherine leave. Her hands were shaking and, when Stefan didn't answer, she tried calling Elijah. Elijah may have betrayed them on the night of the ritual, but he wouldn't allow Klaus to hurt her father.

Would he?

 _"Serafina. Now, when did you and Elijah have time to exchange cell phone numbers?"_

Sera's temper flared when she heard her great-uncle's voice. "Where are they?"

 _"Elijah has been reunited with our family, as I promised. Sorry, Love, but he can't come to the phone right now. He's taking a bit of a nap. And, Stefan? Oh, Stefan's right here. He's been gorging himself on human blood, at my request. So, he can't come to the phone right now either, but I would be glad to tell him that you said hello."_

Sera started shaking her head. "Why are you doing this?" She asked. "Why stake Elijah? Why lead my father on the path to self-destruction? You got what you want, you're a damn hybrid."

 _"Because, my dearest niece, that was only the beginning of my plans. Tell me, how is your uncle? Did he survive?"_

"Yes."

 _"Then, you should be thanking me. After all, it was my blood that cured him."_

"I will thank you when you release my father and wake Elijah and stop being the perpetual asshole I have the misfortune of being related to."

 _"I need your father, Love. He's part of my plan."_

Thunder boomed and lightning flashed. The winds began picking up, slamming tree branches into the closed windows. Damon, Elena, and Xavier looked up, wondering where this sudden storm came from...until they realized that it was coming from Sera.

"Sera!" Xavier rushed over to his cousin and grabbed her shoulders as Damon sat up in bed. His cousin's eyes had turned their familiar blood red color. "Sera, calm down."

 _"Listen to your cousin, Love. There's no need for these theatrics. Your father is leaving town with me and there's nothing you can do about it."_

"I will kill you for this," Sera said, the storm she caused beginning to intensify. Xavier backed away and looked out the window at the storm brewing from his cousin's rage.

 _"Not even your powers can kill me now, Serafina."_

Klaus ended the call and Sera stood there for a few moments before putting her phone back in her pocket and turning to face the others. "What does he want with him?" Sera had fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. "What is the point of this trade?"

"We're going to find out," Damon assured her. "He won't get away with this, Sera."

"We have to do this like we do everything else. With a plan." Xavier looked into his cousin's eyes. "Calm the storm, Sera."

Sera maintained her eye contact with her cousin as the storm died down behind her. "The storm is just beginning."

The End

2018

* * *

 **Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, and followed this first story in the ECUS series! I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, as well as the whole first story!**

 **Be on the lookout for the next story in this series, "Everything's Coming Up Salvatore: An Original Problem", which takes place in Season 3 and will (hopefully) be starting next week!**

 **Please let me know what you think!**


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